Neuropsychological Assessment Services

Antegrade Health offers Neuropsychological Assessment services for adolescents, adults, and  older adults.  Common diagnostic categories include:

• Developmental Delay, Learning Difficulties, ADHD, Behaviour Problems 
• Traumatic Brain Injury, Post-Concussion Syndrome
• Dementia, Cognitive Decline, Chronic Medical Conditions
• Stroke, Brain Tumor, Neurological Disorders.

Effective treatment begins with precise diagnoses. Perspectives uses a  number of techniques to evaluate each patient, always catered to  individual need. Testing helps build a clear understanding of mental and  emotional functioning and identify strengths and weaknesses, allowing  us to base treatments on strengths.

An evaluation can provide answers to various complex questions.   Often, people go many years without answers to why they feel the way  they feel.  An evaluation can put the pieces together and provide a  precise diagnosis to inform treatment or to help clients attain  appropriate accommodations in school/work.

Many clients present the following concerns:

• Problems with attention
• Memory loss
• Learning difficulties
• Concussion/Head injury
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Fatigue
• Chronic pain
• Sleep problems
• Academic and occupational struggles
• Behavioral problems
• Impulsivity
• Addiction
• Relationship stress

Our assessments are often used for:

• Diagnostic clarification
• Treatment planning
• Educational Accommodations 
• Occupational accommodations
• Disability reports

We administer extensive assessments to provide the fullest picture  of our client’s neurocognitive and psychological functioning.  These  evaluations are designed to identify the causes for certain clusters of  symptoms.  For example, we can differentiate if a client’s symptoms are  due to anxiety versus ADHD.  Comprehensive evaluations are most often  used when individuals have failed in treatment, do not agree with a  diagnosis, do not have a clear diagnosis, or need comprehensive testing  for academic or disability purposes. 

 The following domains are assessed: 

• Overall intellectual functioning 
  • Verbal and nonverbal ability
  • Processing speed
  • Working memory
• Academic testing 
  • Reading, Mathematics, Writing, etc.
• Learning and Memory
• Language
• Executive Functioning
• Attention
• Psychological Functioning
• Social and Emotional Processing

Our comprehensive evaluation includes:

• Initial meeting and interview with client, potentially other family members
• Full review of medical history
• Phone consultations with other professionals, as needed
• 3-4 hours of in-office testing
• Full report, including comprehensive list of recommendations for treatment
• Feedback session with client
• Recommendations for vetted professionals and services (i.e. physical therapy, psychiatry, neurology, TMS, etc.)

Our evaluations are designed to discover more information about conditions relating to:

• Social struggle
• Learning disorders
• Intellectual giftedness
• ADHD
• Dementia
• Disability
• Emotional problems
• Anxiety
• Head injuries
• Neurological conditions
• Vocational struggle

We often conduct targeted evaluations when a question exists relating to  specific impairments or areas of functioning. We offer the following  targeted evaluations: 

• ADHD & Executive Functioning Evaluation
• Traumatic Brain Injury/Post-Concussion Syndrome Evaluation
• Cognitive Impairment/Dementia Evaluation
• Psychological/Psychiatric Evaluation

ADHD & Executive Functioning Evaluation 

• Attention and executive functioning skills are highly associated  with academic and occupational success.  We offer this more targeted  assessment to provide clients with a baseline estimate of their ability  level in these domains.  This assessment package is also designed to  test for ADHD.
• This assessment can inform treatment and identify each person’s  areas of strength and weakness.  Executive functioning focused treatment  can then be recommended in order to improve overall functionality.
• Often, people with deficits in attention and executive functioning  present with symptoms of depression, anxiety, ADHD, and impulsivity  (substance abuse).  Treating the core and teaching EF skills with  therapy can lead to optimal results for children and adults.

Traumatic Brain Injury/Post-Concussion Syndrome Evaluation 

• One or repeated concussions can lead to an array of cognitive and  psychiatric symptoms. This targetted assessments looks at specific  domains most often associated with head injuries to provide the most  accurate treatment plan.  Often, clients with head injuries are  misdiagnosed with psychiatric disorders and treated with medication that  can be harmful to  healing from a head injury.
• Specific recommendations will be made for treatment in collaboration with medical professionals.

Cognitive Impairment/Dementia Evaluation 

• Memory loss, changes in language, age, and other factors can  indicate progression into mild cognitive impairment or dementia.  It is  paramount to make as early a diagnosis as possible.  Most medications  that are effective for the treatment/staving off of Alzheimer’s Dementia  are most effective when started early on in disease progression.  Often  clients wait until there are severe functional changes to seek  treatment and assessment, making treatment all the more challenging.
• The value of a thorough dementia evaluation is also to differentiate  different forms of dementia processes and to make recommendations  essential for safety.  For example, different forms of dementia  (Alzheimer’s versus Lewy Body Dementia) require different types of  treatment to be most effective.  Testing will help make those  differentiations

Psychological/Psychiatric Evaluation 

• These assessments provide basic cognitive testing with an emphasis  on emotional, behavioral, and executive functioning measures.   Psychological testing is most often recommended or requested by  individuals with long-standing mental/emotional problems and  dysregulation.  This evaluation will help bring light to the specific  core issues playing a role in a person’s psychological functioning, and  how to improve overall functionality.

We offer Learning Assessments for individuals seeking an outside and second-opinion regarding a school evaluation.  Attaining a Learning Assessment can be essential to ensuring that you or your child receives the  appropriate diagnosis and services.  By seeking out an objective opinion  from a provider outside the school system, you are taking the first  step toward a more accurate diagnosis.  We also strive to ensure that  our reports are up to the specific school board standards. 

These are brief assessments of a specific concern designed to rule out  problems or indicate a need for treatment or further testing.  These  evaluations are ideal for clients who present with a specific problem. These are also helpful for children or older adults who cannot tolerate long testing sessions.  Screeners include:

• Initial meeting and interview 
• 30-60 minutes of testing
• Feedback session 
• Written report with targeted recommendations

ADHD & Executive Function Screening

ADHD screeners aim to differentiate problems with attention and  behavior from other concerns. It is suitable for children, adolescents,  and adults.  

Head Injury Screening

Head injury screeners aim to assess the severity of concussion  symptoms and related functional changes. It is suitable for children,  adolescents, and adults.  

Dementia Screening

Dementia screeners aim to determine possible causes of memory loss  and whether a mild or major cognitive impairment is present. This  screener applies to adults. 

Psychological Assessment Screening

Psychological assessment screeners aim to provide an indicator of  potential psychological or psychiatric problems impacting functionality.  It is suitable for children, adolescents, and adults.  

We offer consultations and second-opinions on a vast range of  issues.  We are flexible to your needs and offer free phone  consultations to first identify how we can best serve you.  If we deem  that you would like to start with receiving a second opinion from us we  will set up an initial interview.

Clients often seek second-opinions from us for:

• Diagnostic clarification
• Multiple failed treatment attempts
• Medical and/or academic record review
• Consulting with a professional team
• Treatment plan guidance and referrals
• Assistance with school accommodations processes
• Advice related to applying for disability

For individuals who are experiencing concerns with their cognitive,  behavioral, emotional, social, or adaptive functioning.  Assessment is  used to determine if symptoms are caused by psychological and/or developmental, acquired, or degenerative neurological factors.  An  individually-tailored treatment approach is then designed to suit the needs of each client. 

• Cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy for emotional issues. 
• Cognitive retraining and compensatory strategies for memory,  attention, reasoning, organisation, executive functioning, and skills of  daily living. 
• Parent training and family education. 
• psycho-education 
• relaxation and stress management training
• cognitive-behavioral techniques to improve mood and coping and maximize adjustment 
• pacing strategies to support attention and processing speed difficulties 
• problem-solving and goal-setting strategies
• health education strategies