Still You / Recovery
Measuring What Medicine Doesn't Ask
Two free clinical instruments for the emotional arc of brain surgery.
Pre-CERS (Pre-Craniotomy Emotional Readiness Screen) — screens before surgery.
PCRES (Post-Craniotomy Recovery Experience Scale) — measures recovery after.
Because surviving surgery is not the same as feeling like yourself again.
Domains are empirically derived from patient qualitative interviews and direct clinical observation, and are currently undergoing formal psychometric validation following the COSMIN methodology.
Pre-CERS — 15 Items, Flag-Based
Baseline emotional state and risk factor screening before surgery. 3-5 minutes. Flag-based interpretation — no pass/fail.
Take the Pre-CERS →PCRES — 35 Items, 8 Domains
Identity, cognition, emotions, grief, fatigue, social connection, the medical-experience gap, and hope. 5-8 minutes. Free and open.
Take the PCRES →The Longitudinal Arc
Pre-CERS establishes the emotional baseline. Serial PCRES administrations reveal the trajectory of recovery.
Still You: Emotional Recovery After Brain Surgery
Free companion book by Eric Whitney, DO