Useful mnemonics for USMLE Step 2 CS (PAM HUGS FOSS etc)

History: ODP PAMHUGSFOSS

O
 OnsetD DurationP Progress

P
 Past occurance of same symptoms
A Allergies
M Medicines

H
 Hospitalization
U Urinary
G Gastrointestinal
S Sleep

F
 Family
O OB/GYN
S Sexual
S Social job/house/smoking/alcohol
The last S is very important. Do not forget to ask the occupation. One trick I learnt from an online blog was to ask about the occupation while washing my hands. Some people like to use the mnemonic SODA for detailed social history. ( Smoking, Occupation, Drugs and Alcohol)




Pain: LIQORAAA
Location I Intensity ask to rate severity (1/10)Q Quality 
O OnsetR Radiation 
A AssociatedA Alleviating
A Aggravating


Domestic abuse: SAFEGARD
Safety
A Afraid of anyone?
F Family/friends?
E Emergency plan?
G Gun at home?
A Alcohol?
R Relationship with spouse.
D Drugs? Depression?


Depression: SIGECAPS
S Sleep 
I Interest
G Guilt
E Energy
M Mood
C Concentration
A Appetite
P Psychomotor
S Suicidal


CAGE Questionairre for alcoholics
Have you ever felt you needed to Cut down on your drinking?
Have people Annoyed you by criticizing your drinking?
Have you ever felt Guilty about drinking?
Have you ever felt you needed a drink first thing in the morning (Eye-opener) to steady your nerves or to get rid of a hangover?

The CAGE questionnaire scores >=2 has a sensitivity of 93% and a specificity of 76% for the identification of problem drinkers.

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