What is a Psychological Assessment?

Clearer Understanding of Specific Issues

We can use our assessment findings to create a treatment plan to help alleviate the specific difficulties or issues a client is facing. Furthermore, assessments are highly beneficial in cases where an individual faces a number of difficulties or multiple challenges and they also reduces the chances of having to resolve unanswered questions and missed information that can result on occasion from an interview on its own.

Tailored and Customized Treatment

Another benefit of psychological assessments is that they can help assess for specific personality traits or characteristics that may affect treatment efficacy. With the results of a thorough assessment, we can then use this information to tailor an effective treatment approach for you.

Increased Understanding of the Effects of an Injury

Psychological assessment can also help an individual to identify how an accident or injury affected them physically, psychologically, mentally and emotionally. This allows for effective treatment planning and for identification of impairment and disability resulting from psychological problems.

The Clinical Interview

As part of the clinical interview portion of the assessment, we will discuss, explore and endeavor to identify the following:

• Mental health functioning and state of well-being
• The nature of any psychological or personality-based difficulties present
• Personal strengths and coping abilities
• Diagnosis(es) if relevant (e.g., Major Depressive Disorder, Social Anxiety Disorder, etc.)
• The etiology or causes of psychological diagnosis(es) or difficulties
• How psychological functioning impacts or limits day-to-day function
• Prognosis (e.g., discussion of how will mental health functioning likely change over time or how will treatment affect psychological functioning etc.)
• Treatment planning and recommendations

Psychological Testing

For the testing portion of the assessment, clients will complete scientifically based self-report psychological tests and questionnaires designed to inform the assessor and provide supportive data to review when formulating the diagnosis(es). Examples of testing may include, but are not limited to, the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI), Survey of Pain Attitudes (SOPA) or Accident Fear Questionnaire (AFQ).

Psychological Report

In most cases, dependent on the type of psychological assessment request, completion of a psychological assessment report is the final step and is created using the information collected from the clinical interview and completed testing. This report is then provided to the referral source as a formal document for the record to advise of diagnosis(es) and/or treatment needs as applicable. The report will outline the assessment findings, any relevant diagnosis(es), prognosis(es) and treatment recommendations as applicable.

In some cases additional information is provided by a referral source, or the client, such as family physician’s clinical notes and records. When available, these documents are also reviewed as part of the assessment process and taken into consideration in the development of the diagnostic opinion and recommendations.

How Long Will the Assessment Take?

A psychological assessment in general takes several hours to complete comprised of the interview and testing components noted above. If needed we can arrange for the services of an interpreter on request.

Depending on the type of assessment being conducted, the clinical interview may occur over a few sessions, and may also include a family member to provide additional (collateral) information about the situation; however this is done only when consent has been provided by the client undergoing the assessment.

Insurer Examinations

A psychological Insurer Examination (IE) is an assessment requested by an automobile insurance adjuster following their claimant’s involvement in a motor vehicle accident. These assessments are done under the purview of the Ontario Accident Benefits legislation, notably Section 44 of the Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule (SABS), and involve the insurer asking benefit specific questions to be addressed pertaining to the claimant’s accident-related injury(ies) or impairment(s). Information sought by the referral source in cases such as this include: the nature and severity of a claimant’s psychological functioning, the etiology or cause of any identified psychological impairment, the need for professional psychological intervention or treatment, the extent to which any ongoing psychological impairment might impact a claimant’s ability to perform their day-to-day activities such as employment and disability opinions. The report generated from an IE is sent directly to the insurer for their file and review to aide in their adjudication of the claim. Copies of these reports cannot be provided directly to the client by our clinic and rather must be requested from the referral source.

Catastrophic (CAT) Impairment Assessment

A catastrophic impairment assessment a type of Insurer Examination conducted under the Statutory Accident Benefits Scheduled (SABS) to determine whether an individual involved in a motor vehicle accident in Ontario suffers impairments of a severity that satisfies the legal definition of a “catastrophic” impairment, as defined in the SABS. These assessments are usually carried out as part of a multidisciplinary assessment in conjunction with other assessments performed by other professionals/disciplines. The report generated from a CAT Insurer Examination is sent directly to the insurer for their file and review to aide in their adjudication of the claim. Copies of these reports cannot be provided directly to the client by our clinic and rather must be requested from the referral source.

As one of the co-founders of Ontario’s only Catastrophic Mental-Behavioural Assessor Certification program (i.e., the C-CAT (MB) program offered by CAPDA and CSME), Dr. Frank is frequently called upon to perform the psychological (i.e., mental-behavioural) portion of these assessments. Should you wish to discuss CAT assessment team composition or other logistical issues, he is available to discuss this matter with any interested insurer or legal representative.

Med-Legal Psychological Assessments

Medico-legal or “med-legal” psychological assessments are comprehensive evaluations of a plaintiff at the request of either the plaintiff’s lawyer or the defendant’s lawyer in the context of a tort claim, whereby a plaintiff is claiming psychological damages resulting from personal injury. The purposes of these assessments is to identify psychological impairments, diagnosis and prognosis, issues of causation, future care needs, and issues pertaining to personal loss, suffering, activity limitations and disability resulting from psychological impairment.

Independent Medical Examinations (IME)

Psychological Independent Medical Examinations or “IMEs” are independent assessments that can be requested by various referral sources for a number of specific purposes. This type of assessment provide an independent psychological opinion whereby there is no previous relationship with the examinee and can be used for disability determination related to long-term or short-term disability or other benefits, or to provide an opinion on fitness to work and a number of different situations requiring the expertise of a psychological professional.