The Evaluation Process
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At Brown Psychological Services, we specialize in providing comprehensive neuropsychological evaluations for individuals of all ages. Our experienced team of professionals is dedicated to helping you better understand your unique cognitive strengths and weaknesses. We use the latest methods and techniques to assess different aspects of brain functioning and to provide you with a detailed report of our findings. Our goal is to help you gain a better understanding of yourself or your child and to make sure you get the most out of our services.
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Initial Contact: The evaluation process begins with the initial conversation with our intake coordinator. We promise you will feel heard and welcome. We will listen to your concerns and answer your questions as best as possible. If we feel we are unable to meet your needs, we will do our best to help point you in the right direction. Once you decide we are a good fit for your family, we will guide you through the process verbally and direct you to various written sources of information to explain the various steps of this meticulous process.
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Intake Appointment: The intake meeting is typically 90 minutes and you will meet with one of our psychologists to collect all necessary medical, and developmental history, any observed patterns of behavior and learning over time, and your current concerns and goals for testing. The intake may be for yourself or your child. Usually, children are not present for this intake meeting; however, the psychologist may schedule another time to meet with your child before beginning the testing. This is a very important step and it’s advised that the client prepares all paperwork prior to this meeting and you are encouraged to answer all questions truthfully and in detail. You may want to write down questions to ask during this meeting. We will speak generally about your goals for the evaluation process and determine the battery of tests we will use to achieve that goal.
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Collateral Information Gathering: After this initial intake, with your permission, you and your child’s teachers, tutors, and/or caregivers, etc, will be asked to complete rating scales designed to measure symptoms and behaviors in comparison to same-age children. A school observation may also be necessary to understand the student in their natural environment.
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Scheduling: The testing sessions will be scheduled over the course of multiple days broken into 2-3 hours blocks of time. We allow for breaks and the number of testing sessions and time for the total evaluation will depend on the complexity of the reason for the examination, your child's age, and pace. In other words, we don't cram everything into a certain amount of time. We will schedule according to your child's needs and testing can take anywhere from two to eight hours.
Factors such as fatigue, confusion, and motor slowing can lengthen the evaluation time.
Testing Appointments: The evaluation is comprised of specifically selected tests conducted in a one-to-one format. Your child will meet with Dr. Brown or one of her associates to complete all testing activities.
The ultimate aim of the clinician is to ensure that the evaluation captures the client's best possible performance under ideal conditions. Thus, it’s a thorough process meticulously conducted to yield the most accurate and beneficial results.
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The tests used in neuropsychological evaluations are generally standardized and norm-referenced, which means results are compared to the individual's same age or grade level. These assessments lay the foundation for a personalized treatment plan.
Data Analysis & Report Production: This is an extremely important step and could take just as long to complete as the in-person testing. A good psychologist will score and analyze all the information to make an accurate assessment of the client to produce an accurate diagnosis and effective treatment recommendations.
Feedback Session: Once the data is analyzed, a comprehensive report will be generated in order to provide a profile of strengths and weaknesses, diagnostic impressions, and a plan for intervention and treatment. Once the diagnostic report from your neuropsychological assessment is produced, the client is encouraged to schedule their feedback appointment so that your psychologist can go over the results, answer all your questions, and discuss treatment recommendations. Depending on the age of the client, it is also beneficial for children and adolescents to have results explained in developmentally appropriate terms.
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A word about cost:
Insurance coverage varies greatly and because we are out-of-network providers, we encourage you to inquire with your specific insurance company. The following CPT (procedure) codes may be useful when you call:
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90791 Parent Intake
96130 and 96131 Psychological Testing
96132 and 96133 Neuropsychological Testing
90837 Feedback Session
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To learn more about the types of evaluations we offer, please click HERE or refer to our Neuropsychological Evaluations page.
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