BDS: Buffalo Delirium Scale
2018A home-hospice monitoring measure for changes that may precede delirium. It describes prodromal symptom frequency and does not establish a current DSM delirium diagnosis.
Classification
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Tool and original sources
This record describes a method rather than a downloadable bedside form. The main source is linked below.
Original paper
- Principal sourceBreier JM, Meier ST, Kerr CW, Wright ST, Grant PC, Depner RM. Screening for Delirium: Development and Validation of the Buffalo Delirium Scale for Use in a Home-Based Hospice Setting. The American journal of hospice & palliative care. 2018;35(5):794-798. doi: 10.1177/1049909117739386. PMID: 29153005.
This paper reports the development and initial validation of BDS. It is the main source for the method, its intended use and the evidence available at publication.
At a glance
- Purpose
- Future-risk prediction
- Population
- Adult
- Setting
- Palliative care
- Time
- nurse-completed during standard weekly hospice visits; minutes not reported
- Items
- 11
- Score or threshold
- No externally validated clinical cutoff
Evidence
Evidence maturityNo eligible DTA study identified
More evidence and citation details
- Full name
- Buffalo Delirium Scale
- Evidence summary
- psychometric-validation
- Source-study sample
- n = 817 patients; 4,992 assessments
- Citation
- Breier JM, Meier ST, Kerr CW, Wright ST, Grant PC, Depner RM Screening for Delirium: Development and Validation of the Buffalo Delirium Scale for Use in a Home-Based Hospice Setting American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. 2018;35(5):794-798. PMID 29153005
Copyright and reuse
- Version
- Original home-hospice Buffalo Delirium Scale reported in 2017/2018
- Information checked
- 2026-07-19
Instrument-specific terms apply. See the access and copyright policy or send a correction.
Sources checked 2026-07-29. How profiles are prepared.