Neuropsych evaluation - who administers

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:After a long wait, my DC is scheduled for a neuropsych evaluation. I got the information and it seems the doctor does not do most of the testing, but rather an M.A. who helps him. I find that strange for $5000 or so. Is this the normal practice?

$5000 sounds outrageously expensive. I am wrong here? My eval with Childrens was a fraction of that, maybe $1k total including the speech eval, and most of this was covered by insurance. In addition, if it isn't the doctor but a M.A.

Does your child have a particularly complex problem that requires broad examination over multiple areas?

$5K is usually the amount when ASD is suspected.

Otherwise a complete evaluation with a private psych will run you around $4K. Children's and KKI accept insurance which helps keep costs low, however I don't think they do the educational portion.

Both Children's and KKI do the educational portion. At KKI, insurance actually covered that. At Children's, they separately bill you for the educational portion ($200). Both facilities use students/clinical fellows for most of the testing, with the doctor doing some of the testing AND interpreting/writing up the report. Children's did a fabulous job testing DC (still waiting for the final report and eventually will write more about the experience). KKI was not as good (just in our experience) and our DC's psychiatrist, who treats DC for ADHD, recommended Children's.

[Anonymous]

What about Weinfeld? Anyone know?

The wait time is much less, but it seems like they place each family with a particular person who is not an "in house" evaluator. How does that work?

[Anonymous]

Just to clarify about Stixrud, the dr does the first day of testing (3 hours). A psychology associate does the second day (4 hours, not including the lunch break). Dr then pulls it all together and does the 2-hour feedback meeting with the parents, and then writes the report. Parents shouldn't be taken by surprise because it is discussed during the intake phone call and in the confirmation letter.

I think there are strengths and weaknesses in this model - it means the child works with and gets the perspectives of two different people, and shortens wait times (if the dr did two days of testing s/he could see half as many kids). OTOH, it means some behavior isn't observed by the dr. directly. Personally, I woulnt choose a practice, either for or against, on this issue.

[Anonymous]

Weinfeld Education Group does charge less than most groups and their lead time is between is typically less than 6 weeks. They have offices in both MD and VA. They also do Neuropsychs and Psychoeducational Assessments. They do not use any Psychology associates. All PhD.'s complete the testing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Weinfeld Education Group does charge less than most groups and their lead time is between is typically less than 6 weeks. They have offices in both MD and VA. They also do Neuropsychs and Psychoeducational Assessments. They do not use any Psychology associates. All PhD.'s complete the testing.

Oh, what is the difference between neuropsych evaluations and Psychoeducational?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just to clarify about Stixrud, the dr does the first day of testing (3 hours). A psychology associate does the second day (4 hours, not including the lunch break). Dr then pulls it all together and does the 2-hour feedback meeting with the parents, and then writes the report. Parents shouldn't be taken by surprise because it is discussed during the intake phone call and in the confirmation letter.

I think there are strengths and weaknesses in this model - it means the child works with and gets the perspectives of two different people, and shortens wait times (if the dr did two days of testing s/he could see half as many kids). OTOH, it means some behavior isn't observed by the dr. directly. Personally, I woulnt choose a practice, either for or against, on this issue.

Since we just used Stixrud for testing I thought I'd weigh in with our experience. We made the appointment in early December, had the testing done in mid-January, and now have the report. We found the psychologist really got a good sense of our child, her strengths and weaknesses. It didn't bother me at all that the second day of testing was by a psych associate. I really appreciated the speed and thoroughness of the process. All told, the testing, feedback session and report were all completed in two weeks. The report was well written and comprehensive. The feedback was on point and well delivered. No complaints at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Weinfeld Education Group does charge less than most groups and their lead time is between is typically less than 6 weeks. They have offices in both MD and VA. They also do Neuropsychs and Psychoeducational Assessments. They do not use any Psychology associates. All PhD.'s complete the testing.

Oh, what is the difference between neuropsych evaluations and Psychoeducational?

Just a point of clarification. Psychological Associates generally have their Ph.D.s or Psy.D.s. They've completed all the requirements of their education and training but are just still accruing supervised hours for licensure. If you knew how many hours someone has under their belt before they're even at the stage of Psych Associate you'd be less concerned. These aren't beginners -- they have years of experience working clinically before this point.