For many children, having problems with school or social interactions is a struggle they’ll always have to deal with. But for children that display serious issues with learning or interacting, one thing that can help may be neuropsychological evaluations. In Northern New Jersey, Dr. Shifrin helps families uncover the strengths and weaknesses of their children so that they can get the best help possible to reduce the need to struggle. Through this process, children can succeed in a way that is catered to how they learn and interact best. This basic guide to neuropsychological evaluations can help you determine if this route may be best for your child.
What are Neuropsychological Evaluations?
This process involves a neuropsychologist meeting with the child and analyzing their brain-based behaviors and activities. This is different from meeting with a psychologist, who is primarily looking for things like outside trauma, or anxiety disorders, that explain temporary behaviors. Instead, a neuropsychological evaluation is an attempt to uncover possible disorders and conditions that are causing long-term behaviors. Some things that may be done at this evaluation include tests of:
- Cognitive ability
- Visual processing
- Processing speed
- Verbal skills
- Motor skills
- Attention ability
- Memory
- Executive function
- Emotional processing
- Social interaction
- Adaptive functioning
- Reading, writing, and math
How Long Do Neuropsychological Evaluations Take?
Usually, the initial evaluation takes a full day. Neuropsychologists spend up to eight hours with the child, observing their behavior and interacting with them to better understand them. During this time, extensive notes are taken, and then those notes are analyzed. All the data, including any data from the child’s medical history, is gathered and a report is created that details why the child may or may not be diagnosed with autism according to the neuropsychologist. This report usually takes around a month to fully analyze, but it could happen much faster than that in some cases.
When Should My Child Have Neuropsychological Evaluations?
There are many reasons parents may consider neuropsychological evaluations for their child. Perhaps your child is struggling in school, or maybe they are having problems in social situations. It could be that you have always been told your child is fine, but you’ve seen them struggling in private, and want to get them help. Whatever your concerns, you can contact Dr. Joshua Shifrin to learn more about neuropsychological evaluations in Northern New Jersey by calling his office at 123-966-0309. You can pay a visit to Facebook page for more information.
