Psychologists’ Services
Doctors Michael Assel, Linda Ewing-Cobbs, Cathy Guttentag, and Mary Prasad are all experienced, licensed psychologists who evaluate children from infancy through young adulthood. While there is significant overlap among our skills and populations served, you may choose to request a particular psychologist based on his or her areas of interest, expertise, or other background. or based on a referral or personal recommendation.
At the time your child’s appointment is scheduled, parent(s) will be mailed several questionnaires which should be completed prior to your appointment and turned in to us when you arrive. These will include a developmental history questionnaire, a behavior questionnaire, and a questionnaire for your child’s teacher(s) or another alternate caregiver who interacts with your child on a regular basis.
Parent Interview
On the day of your appointment, the psychologist will interview parent(s) about your child’s developmental and family history, functioning at home and in school/childcare, review any previous testing and intervention services, and discuss recent events surrounding the reason for this evaluation. There may also be additional parent-report measures administered through a semi-structured interview to obtain detailed data regarding the child’s communication skills, social-emotional skills, independent self-care and daily living skills, and/or atypical behaviors.
Assessment
Our psychologists use a variety of different tests and observational measures depending on the age of the child and the presenting problem(s). Evaluation of the younger child will typically include assessment of general cognitive development, speech and language (expressive and receptive skills), fine and gross motor function, social interaction skills, and play skills. Assessments for school-aged children and adolescents generally include intellectual ability, attention, memory, academic skills, executive functions, social-emotional functioning, and fine motor function/handwriting.
- Direct assessment of infants and children up to four years of age takes place with parents present in the room.
- Four- to five-year-olds, and children of any age with significant developmental delays, may be evaluated separately or with parents in the room, depending on the child’s ability to separate from the parents and the level of the child’s communication skills.
- Typically, older children and adolescents will be evaluated separately from parents.
The assessment portion of the evaluation will take place on the day of your first appointment. The parent interview and testing typically lasts between three and four hours for younger children and up to seven hours for young adults.
Parent Feedback Meeting
The parent feedback meeting will be scheduled at a mutually convenient time. This meeting is scheduled for one hour. At the time of the parent feedback meeting, the psychologist will meet with the parent(s) to review the results of the evaluation, provide a diagnosis or diagnoses if appropriate, answer questions, and provide recommendations for interventions, school or classroom placement, relevant community services, medical follow-up, or other referral suggestions as appropriate.
- Often we can provide you with specific names of recommended therapists, tutors, schools, or programs that can meet your child’s needs.
- We also often provide informative handouts regarding your child’s diagnosis and/or specific issues, and we will recommend a schedule for follow-up assessments to monitor your child’s progress and continuing needs over time.
- Adolescents, and school-age children upon request, are welcome to attend part of the feedback session if they choose, to hear a summary of the results and recommendations and have their questions answered.
