Psychological Assessment of Surgical Candidates

Ryan J. Marek, PhD, is an assistant professor of Clinical Psychology at Sam Houston State University College of Osteopathic Medicine (SHSU-COM). Dr. Marek teaches medical students, engages in an active program of research, serves as consulting editor for both medical and psychological peer-reviewed journals, and holds a practice at SHSU Physicians clinic where he conducts various psychological assessments (including presurgical evaluations) and therapy. Dr. Marek amp rsquo s program of research is focused on understanding how psychological factors contribute to medical outcomes. He currently has over 5 peer-reviewed publications mostly focused on presurgical psychological evaluations and how they predict various outcomes.Andrew R. Block, PhD, is a fellow of the American Psychological Association and is board certified in Clinical Health Psychology. He has provided presurgical psychological evaluations and chronic pain treatment for more than 4 years, the last 32 at Texas Back Institute. He has over 5 peer-reviewed publications primarily focused on psychosocial influences on spine surgery outcome, most recently studying the MMPI-2-RF and MMPI-3. He is co-developer, along with Yossef Ben-Porath, of the MMPI-2-RF spine surgery candidate and spinal cord stimulator candidate interpretive reports. He has four previous books, including Presurgical Psychological Screening: Understanding Patients, Improving Outcomes. He may be contacted at: andrewblockpsych yahoo.com.

• INTRODUCTION. Presurgical Psychological Assessments: Historical Perspectives and Current StatusRyan J. Marek and Andrew R. BlockCHAPTER : The Risk Identification and Mitigation (RIM) Model for Presurgical Psychological AssessmentsRyan J. Marek and Andrew R. BlockCHAPTER 2: Selecting and Administering Psychological Measures for Presurgical AssessmentsRyan J. MarekCHAPTER 3: Ethical Considerations in the Assessment of Surgical CandidatesChristine D. Liff and Shane S. BushCHAPTER 4: Metabolic and Bariatric SurgeryAllyson Diggins and Ninoska PetersonCHAPTER 5: Spine SurgeryJulie Murray, Jayme S. Warner, and Scott DeBerardCHAPTER : Gender Embodiment SurgeryZo Amaro Jimenez and Colt St. AmandCHAPTER 7: Surgery for Treatment and Prevention of Breast CancerAndrea BradfordCHAPTER 8: Solid Organ TransplantWendy Balliet, D. Brian Haver, Stacey Maurer, and Lillian ChristonCHAPTER 9: Deep Brain Stimulation for Parkinson amp rsquo s Disease and DepressionJennifer A. FoleyCHAPTER : Gynecologic SurgeryAndrea BradfordCHAPTER : Surgical Treatment of Temporal Lobe EpilepsyGenevieve Rayner, Honor Coleman, Emily Cockle, Andrew Neal, Charles MalpasCHAPTER 2: Practical Suggestions for Presurgical Psychological Assessments and Future Directions for the FieldAndrew R. BlockAbout the EditorsIndex