At this point, I ask patients to tell me their fortune. This allows me to assess:
Fine motor skills. Do they have a hand tremor or weakness, or a problem with involuntary movement? How well do they open the individually wrapped cookie?
Problem solving. On the slip of paper in the cookie, fortunes are printed on one side; on the other side are lucky numbers and a Chinese phrase. Some patients fail to turn the slip of paper over; they look it and say, “There are only numbers on this piece of paper.”
Eyesight. Can they see without glasses? Did they bring their glasses? (By extension, I can gauge whether they need, and use, glasses when reaching for a pill bottle in the medicine cabinet.)
Literacy. Can they read their fortune aloud?
Last, I ask what the fortune means and how it might apply to them. This helps me understand their:
Mindset. Having them explain how the fortune applies to them can be helpful to understanding their thinking.
Thought process. I am looking for how they think: Abstractly? Concretely? How well do they articulate and explain the meaning of the fortune?