Our Locations
Assessment
An assessment with a clinical psychologist can assist with:
- Identifying areas of developmental difficulty
- Identifying behavioural and emotional difficulties which are impacting on the child and family functioning
- Identifying appropriate interventions and services to support the child to reach their potential
- Develop strategies that parents can implement to enhance wellbeing for the child and family
- School placement decisions
- Transition planning for preschool/school
- Family and sibling supports
Karen aims to provide a relaxed and child-friendly environment in which you and your child can enjoy the assessment process.
Karen is able to provide comprehensive psychological assessment in order to identify your child’s developmental challenges. This can be done to provide both a formal diagnosis (if required) and to accurately identify your child’s strengths and difficulties in order to develop an individual intervention plan.
A comprehensive psychological assessment of a child is obtained through a range of methods, including administration of standardized assessment tools, parent report via questionnaires and clinical interview, observations of interactions with family members and peers, formal and informal interactions with the child and a comprehensive developmental history. With your consent, Karen can also liaise with other agencies and professionals involved with your child and family in order to obtain further information and provide appropriate recommendations. You can be assured that this will be done with strict confidentiality and according to the APS Code of Ethics.
Assessment of Autism Spectrum Disorders
Karen is recognised as a qualified diagnostician of Autism Spectrum Disorders by Autism SA. In South Australia a person is required to be diagnosed by two different professionals either as a joint assessment or individual assessments (i.e., paediatrician, psychologist or speech pathologist) in order to be accepted as a client of Autism SA.
Karen can provide one of these assessments, either as a first or second opinion or as a joint assessment with either Sally-Ann Gordon, Speech Pathologist, (see www.sallyanngordon.com.au) or with Dr Brian Conway, Paediatrician (see www.paediatricsatburnside.com), along with a comprehensive diagnostic report that is required for recognition of the diagnosis by Autism SA. In order for a child with an ASD to receive additional funded support within their school (either public or private), registration of the diagnosis of ASD with Autism SA is required. This report can also be used to qualify for support under the Commonwealth Government “Helping Children with Autism” (HCWA) package (FaCHSIA Early Intervention Funding and Medicare Autism Assessment and Treatment Items).
