How To Try This

In Brief As the population grows and the proportion of older adults increases, the incidence and prevalence of dementia are expected to increase dramatically. Health care providers' lack of awareness of current geriatrics practice and persistence in holding the outdated belief that confusion is a normal part of aging contribute to significant underrecognition of dementia in all settings. Early recognition and diagnosis are critical to carrying out best practices in the care of older patients. The Mini-Cog is a simple, effective, easily administered screening tool that can uncover cognitive impairment in its earliest stages. The tool consists of a three-item recall task and a simple clock-drawing task. The Mini-Cog takes only three to five minutes to administer and requires minimal training. For a free online video demonstrating the use of this tool, go to https://links.lww.com/A204. Dementia is still significantly underrecognized in all settings. This tool, consisting of a three-item recall and a clockdrawing test, takes only minutes to administer, can help clinicians identify this progressive disorder.