Assessment

Clinical assessment is used by psychologists in order to determine the presence of a psychological disorder, made up of a number of psychological symptoms. During the clinical interview, the psychologist gathers information on the client’s family and medical history, employment and social functioning, and the individual’s psychological history, including past treatment and family psychological history. These factors and others can impact a person’s mental health and well-being.

The overall goal of the clinical assessment is to give the psychologist a comprehensive understanding of the client and his/her behavior. This evaluation is significant in determining diagnosis and for treatment planning. Sometimes, clinical evaluations are more informal, made during the initial interview with a client beginning psychotherapy. At other times, they entail structured interviews and other assessment tools used to answer a specific referral question, such as competency of the client.

Neuropsychological Evaluation is a testing method through which a psychologist, such as myself, can gather data about an individual’s cognitive, behavioral, linguistic, motor and executive functioning. It is used for both diagnosis and treatment planning. Testing a variety of cognitive abilities and examining patterns of performance in different areas can help the neuropsychologist make inferences about underlying brain functions.

The benefits of neuropsychological evaluation are that it can help identify your strengths and weaknesses, aid in differential diagnosis, and is normed and reliable. It can be used to measure baseline functioning, cognitive change, and outcome and has led to the early detection of many disorders. By determining which cognitive abilities are preserved and which are affected in an individual with an illness or brain injury, I can predict how well one may respond to different forms of treatment or rehabilitation.