Phenomenology and treatment of psychotic disorders in the psychiatric emergency service

Emergency treatment of psychotic individuals begins with making a working d iagnosis and leads to the implementation of a crisis intervention plan that lays the foundation for definitive treatment. The emergency evaluation of a psychotic patient calls on all of the skills of the psychiatrist. As soon as a patient's condition is stabilized, the psychiatrist should review all of the available information, develop a working diagnosis, and initiate de finitive treatment of the presumed disorder.