Incapacitated Person

In the case of vulnerable adults, "capacity" means an adult's ability to understand choices, the resulting consequences, and to make a decision that considers his well-being. Capacity can be initially assessed with a tool called the “Mini Mental Status Exam.” It is a brief assessment tool for preliminary evaluations – assessing memory, spatial orientation and object identification. The term “capacity” is often confused with "competency," which is a legal term determined in a court of law. If someone lacks capacity, he or she will likely be a vulnerable adult.

Identifying a lack of capacity in an individual can start as a gut feeling that the adult does not seem to understand what you are saying or can’t follow the conversation. Whether an adult is incapacitated or not is very important to know when filing a "Report of Harm." In some institutional settings the "Mini Mental Status Exam" may need to be administered by a mental health professional. Ultimately, the agency investigating an abuse case will do an assessment. In order to have a fully accurate assessment, a neurophysiologist can do extensive testing, which can take several hours.

Examples suggesting a lack of capacity could be:

• a person not being able to answer questions about herself, such as date of birth or where she lives
• not knowing what to do in case of a fire
• not knowing who helps her with any aspect of daily care
• any other personal question where you could easily verify the answer.

If these questions cannot be answered, a further assessment would be needed.