If a pt is confused but knows his or her name, do they get a 4 or 5 on the GCS?

Tex. · Oct 27, 2015

4. They are confused.

akulahawkRN, ADN, RN, EMT-P · Oct 27, 2015

With the Glasgow Coma Scale (Verbal), to be considered "Alert" you must be at least oriented to person, place, and generally to time or recent events. I'll usually score a "5" if they're oriented x3 and generally makes sense in conversation but I'll also note exactly how oriented. Oriented x2 or less is automatically confused, so that always gets a "4" on the GCS (Verbal) scale. A&Ox3 but otherwise not making much sense is a "4" for me, but again I'll note that. With experience, you'll quickly determine which people are a "5" and which people are a "4" in that category.