ADHD Assessment
​ADHD Assessment
Understanding your child better..
Is your child having challenging behaviour?
For their age and stage, do you think they are more difficult to parent than your other children or friend’s children?
No matter what you do or how you give directions to your child, do you just not get anywhere and end up yelling in order to get their attention and still not get the job done?
Are you getting feedback from school that your child is struggling with learning or following instructions? How do you know when it’s the right time to seek help?
To get to the bottom of what may be behind what is going on with your child, especially when the behaviour is affecting the family and preventing their learning, a thorough understanding of what factors may be contributing to the behaviour needs to be explored.
Sometimes the answer lies in an organic issue like sleep problems, anxiety issues or
learning difficulties. Another avenue of exploration is one of focus and concentration, where an ADHD diagnosis may explain things.
Our Psychologist is qualified and experienced in assessing ADHD, and can help you understand if attention, focus or impulsivity might be less developed in your child than you would expect and that this might be underlying their difficult behaviours. An ADHD diagnosis can help open up avenues of knowledge, support or medication if necessary to ensure your child experiences the best chance of healthy development.
Our comprehensive psychological assessment for ADHD
ADHD is a developmental brain-based condition that most people associate with but not limited to; impulsivity, hyperactivity, emotional regulation problems, working memory difficulties, planning and organisation difficulties, and an inability to stop distractions. Some individuals are described as ‘daydreamy’. It can affect a child’s learning and social interactions and can have a significant impact on the overall well-being of the family.
ADHD can run in families and it is more common in boys than girls. The exact causes are unknown. ADHD is not caused by poor parenting, though parenting becomes a challenge!
Understanding an individual’s strengths and needs with a comprehensive assessment, and with good supports at home and school and in some cases medication treatment, a child with ADHD can have a successful life.
Australian guidelines for testing for ADHD recommend that we use observations of the individual, parents and teachers. We do this by asking parents and teachers to complete electronic versions of rating forms like the Conner’s questionnaire, and dependant on presentation, other forms may be used as well.
The ADHD Assessment Process:
Step 1: The initial step is to hold a parent only interview (in person at our Hornsby Clinic or online) with the psychologist, to capture presenting problems along with a comprehensive developmental history including gathering school performance information.
Step 2: The child attends an appointment on site at our Regus Rooms. That appointment is about 2-3 hours in duration. The child will complete an IQ Test and for certain age groups, a computer-based continuous performance test, is used by the psychologist to capture information as it relates to the likelihood of ADHD.
Step 3: Is a feedback session with the psychologist (by Zoom), about 2-4 weeks following the child’s onsite assessment.
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To us your child is more than a checklist of symptoms! When assessing for conditions like ADHD we want to make sure there is no other explanation for these symptoms. Poor sleep hygiene, diet, and even people with high IQ's can look like they have an attention problem.
A thorough exploration and skilled interpretation is needed to diagnose ADHD.
Remember, your child is more than a checklist of symptoms!
If this sounds like you and you would like more information, please give us a call.
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