Neuropsychological Evaluations

What is it?

A neuropsychological evaluation involves talking with a specialist and taking some tests designed to look at how your brain is working. This helps doctors, patients, and families understand what's causing certain symptoms and figure out the best way to treat them.

What does it involve?

In the evaluation, you'll be tested in areas like attention, memory, language, visual skills, problem-solving, mental processing speed, and mood. This kind of testing is especially helpful for people dealing with a stroke, brain injury, dementia, and other memory or thinking problems.

What are some reasons to get this evaluation?

Neuropsychological evaluations are typically done to:

Diagnose memory and attention problems.
Distinguish depression from dementia.
Differentiate signs of normal performance from symptoms of related to neurological conditions.
Determine whether cognitive side effects from toxic exposure, susbtance abuse, or certain medications.
Assess a person's capacity or level of disability.
Document a person's recovery from a neurologic injury or illness.

What should I expect during an appointment?

During an appointment, the clinician will review a list of questions pertaining to your history as well as your level of independence before and since the onset of cognitive and emotional symptoms / “challenges”. We often recommend you are accompanied to the appointment by a family member or friend who may know you well and can offer additional information or even a third-party perspective to the clinician conducting the assessment.
With your consent, the clinician will then ask your loved one to leave the testing room and proceed with the administration of a number of tasks / questions tapping into areas of cognitive functioning and mood. Please keep in mind the no tasks are invasive. The testing phase can last anywhere between three to six hours and can be divided into two or more sessions, depending on the client’s level of energy.
Upon completion of the testing phase, data collected is analyzed.

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