Dendrite
A roadmap for conducting a neuropsychological evaluation — one step at a time, on the device already in your hand.
Dendrite is a reference guide for clinicians conducting neuropsychological evaluations. It walks through the stages of an evaluation and shows, at each step, the concept being assessed, the tests commonly used, and the relevant brain regions.
It is a working prototype. I am sharing it at this stage specifically to hear where it is wrong, thin, or mis-sequenced before it goes any further.
The one design decision that shapes everything else
Dendrite informs. It does not diagnose.
A decision-making tool would say: “Based on these answers, the patient has X.”
Dendrite says: “Here is what this step involves. You decide what it means.”
What it never does
Score, weigh, or interpret responses. Suggest a diagnosis. Recommend a specific patient's battery. Substitute for training or judgment.
What it does
Asks navigational questions only — where to look next, never here is the answer. Sensitive steps carry an explicit line: guidance only; clinical judgment rests with you.
This is a deliberate line, and I would like to know whether it is drawn in the right place. It is what keeps Dendrite a reference guide rather than a clinical decision-support device — a distinction with real regulatory weight.
The problem it solves
Dendrite shows one card at a time. You answer what is in front of you; the guide handles where that leads. The complexity is hidden, not lost. That compression is the whole value proposition, and it is the first thing I would like challenged.
Two ways to move through it
- Step-by-step — yes/no questions leading down a path, for sequences where order matters (Stage One).
- Menu — a hub of sub-topics explored in any order, each its own card, for domains where you already know what you are looking for (Stages Two through Four).
Reading the cards
| Plain | A normal step in the evaluation. |
| Red | Urgent — refer to a medical provider. |
| Amber | A caution, a limitation, or reference material. |
| Purple | Brain regions and neurological correlates. |
Where it stands
Fifty cards, all paths verified. Four stages are built out; three are in progress or awaiting content.
| Stage | Covers | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Intro | Interview, collateral information | Complete |
| One — Orientation | Orientation to self, time, place, situation; MMSE, MoCA, NAB & WMS screeners; levels of consciousness; sensation check; testing modification; screener decision | Complete |
| Two — Attention | Rule-outs; five attentional states (focused/selective, sustained, divided, alternating, activity rate); Duncan & Mirsky model as reference | Complete |
| Three — Language | Branches to cranial nerves or language domains; full CN I–XII exam with bedside procedures; expressive, receptive, naming, parosody; aphasia table; aprosodia & apraxia reference | Complete |
| Four — Memory & Learning | Basic process and rule-outs; how memory forms; sensory, short-term/working, long-term memory with brain regions; delayed recall & recognition; impairment table; amnesia types | Complete |
| Five — Visual/Spatial | Concept only | In progress |
| Six — Executive Functioning | -- | Awaiting content |
| Seven — Psychiatric | -- | Awaiting content |
Two structural choices worth flagging
The cranial nerve detour
In the source chart, the nerve exam sits in the middle of the language section — because a nerve problem, not a language problem, may be the real cause of a speech difficulty. In Dendrite this became a branch at the language entry, side by side with the language domains: out of the way, but one tap from where you would want it. Is that the right placement, or should it come first?
The memory-forming sequence
Sensory storage → attention → short-term memory → rehearsal, elaboration, emotional charge → encoding → long-term memory. This is a learning aid, not an assessment step, so it lives on its own card rather than in the assessment menu. Does separating it that way hold up, or does it belong in the flow?
Runs anywhere
Dendrite is a single web page. Nothing to install, no account, no data collected. It works on a phone between sessions and on a desktop during report writing. Wide reference tables scroll sideways on a phone rather than shrinking the text past legibility.
What I am asking you
General impressions are welcome, but these are the questions I am actually stuck on:
- Is the sequence right? Does the order of stages match how you actually work, or is this the order of a textbook rather than a session?
- Is anything missing or misplaced? Particularly rule-outs, and particularly in Attention and Memory.
- Is the inform/diagnose line in the right place? Too cautious to be useful, or appropriately restrained?
- Do the tests listed match current practice? Anything dated, anything obvious left out.
- Would you actually reach for this? During an evaluation, while writing a report, when supervising — or not at all? “Not at all” is a useful answer.
- Stages Five, Six, and Seven are open. Visual/spatial, executive functioning, and psychiatric are unbuilt. If any of these is your area, I would like to hear what belongs there.
Dendrite is a reference guide for trained clinicians. It does not diagnose, does not score or interpret responses, and is not a substitute for clinical judgment. It is a prototype under active development and has not been validated.