ABSTRACT
When clinicians are asked about a patient’s prognosis, they frequently reply, "It's good" or "It's guarded." However, as one will see, prognosis is a much broader concept than this. Several factors must be considered in formulating a prognosis. These factors can be organized into two categories: disorder related and treatment related. The disorder-related factors are adapted from Morrison (1995). It is likely that beginning clinicians will need to consult a standard textbook of psychiatry to become familiar with the answers to these questions. This will again be time well spent, as questions about prognosis are important to patients and their families. The first factor is course. The second factor is timing. The third factor is social considerations. The fourth factor is heredity. CRAPS (Compliance with treatment, Response to prior treatment, Availability of treatment, Personality/defense mechanisms, Social support) a mnemonic attributed to Robinson, is useful for summarizing the treatment-related factors.
