Is a NeuroPsych Exam Questions

[Cuckoomamma]

It's definitely time to pursue a neuropych exam for our younger dd (9.5) for learning disabilities. Is this something that may be covered by insurance or we can use our flex spending account for?

On a completely separate note, I've been reluctant to have her tested because she performs so drastically different on one day to the next. She's going along fine telling analog time and then, out of the blue, she draws a complete blank on how to tell the minute hand. If you tested her on one day she'd appear fine, on another, completely not. How does a neuropsych take those kinds of swings into ability into account?

We homeschool, so there's no school testing available.

[Simon]

We had Ds2 tested last Jan and he was on the very young side so it may be a bit different since your Dd is older, but IME we filled out extensive questionnaires as parents, there is another set for teachers, and then we had a first appointment/interview and then after that a testing day. I felt they were very thorough, as we also dealt with lapses that didn't appear daily. You can note the variability in abilities on the paper reports and mention them in the interview, too.

[Cuckoomamma]

I thought of another question - The woman I spoke with mentioned that we would give detailed information during the consultation about what we were seeing with dd. I was thinking that the testing would reveal whatever was wrong and then we would share our observations with the tester afterwards. I want to hear what the results of the testing indicates and what her perceptions are without my biased input. Is that unusual?

[hillview]

I thought of another question - The woman I spoke with mentioned that we would give detailed information during the consultation about what we were seeing with dd. I was thinking that the testing would reveal whatever was wrong and then we would share our observations with the tester afterwards. I want to hear what the results of the testing indicates and what her perceptions are without my biased input. Is that unusual?

thing is there are a TON of tests they could do (ADHD, literacy, etc) so they need to pick the ones that address your areas of concern KWIM?

[egoldber]

The process generally starts with an interview of parents and school/teachers (but could be other significant figures in her educational world) to get a sense of the areas and scope of concerns. That guides the testing that is done.

People tend to use "neuropsych eval" as a generic term, but there are two main types: psychoeducational and neuropsychological.

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/317596-overview
http://www.ldonline.org/article/19293/

The psychoeducational eval is focused primarily on learning issues. If the concerns are broader and include things like attention, focus, emotional issues (e.g., anxiety or depression) then the assessments would include test instruments for those as well.

The testing process is generally several hours long and is usually broken into 2-4 sessions.

As for insurance, it is very difficult to get insurance to cover these and they generally require prior authorization. If the testing is only educational (vs. mental health) many insurance plans cover nothing. Assessments for things like ADHD, anxiety, depression, and autism have a better chance of being covered, but even then many plans exlcude coverage for the evaluation even if they cover treatment.