THE IMPORTANCE OF EMPLOYING OBJECTIVE MALINGERING DETECTION METHODS WHEN SECONDARY GAIN POTENTIAL EXISTS - A CASE ILLUSTRATION

Failure to detect intentional failure on cognitive status and neuropsy chological examinations can be costly, not just in wasted resources, b ut also in deleterious societal consequences and damage to health prof ession credibility. A forensic case is presented in which, following l engthy legal proceedings protracted by conflicting clinical opinions r egarding the patient's cognitive status, procedures designed to detect malingering demonstrated incontestable evidence of intentional failur e. This case demonstrates the value of supplementing clinical judgment regarding patient motivation with objective procedures whenever the p otential for secondary gain exists.