QUERI – Quality Enhancement Research Initiative

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Disorders of Consciousness Scale (DOCS): Administration and Clinical Application

The Disorders of Consciousness Scale (DOCS) is a bedside test measuring neurobehavioral functioning during coma recovery. This bedside neurobehavioral evaluation was designed to allow the clinician to examine the unconsciousness as a continuum of fluctuating levels of neurobehavioral integrity while detecting and distinguishing between true changes and random fluctuation. The DOCS is different from other assessment tools in that the rating scale of the DOCS provides a description of neurobehavioral recovery. This rating scale describes levels of neurobehavioral integrity and a level is assigned to responses to test stimuli. The DOCS was developed to detect subtle changes in observable indicators of neurobehavioral functioning.

Any questions or comments, or for a copy of the DVD, please contact Ann Guernon, MS, SLP, CCRC at Ann.Guernon@va.gov

Download the manual (1.9 MB, PDF)

Video
Disorders of Consciousness Scale (DOCS): Administration and Clinical Application (1:11:25 min)