Psychological Assessments
Psychological Assessments
What are Psychological Assessments?
Psychological assessments cover a broad range of assessments aimed to evaluate a person’s presentation, behaviour, mental health and cognition, and to identify suitable recommendations and services to improve their overall quality of life relative to these areas.
Psychological assessments are useful in determining a diagnosis, recommending appropriate strategies and assisting to gather evidence to support referrals and applications to additional services.
Our experienced psychologists are able to provide evidenced-based therapy due to their extensive training and qualifications, wide range of experiences, and our internal professional development program. For more specific information about our psychologists’ individual experience and areas of expertise, you can view Our Expertise.
Psychologists frequently work closely with other allied health professionals to provide complementary services to achieve a participant’s goals.
For anyone seeking psychological services and assessments, please see our list of services below.
Alira's Story
Hear from Alira about some of the challenges she has experienced living with cerebral palsy, and how she has continued to progress and achieve more with the support of her psychologist, Georgia Holloway.
Video Transcript
00:00:08–00:00:29 · Alira (Participant): Hi, my name is Alira and I'm from Sydney. I'm 30 years old. I have a condition called cerebral palsy. People would make fun of me, and they don't understand my condition, so I was called “jelly legs,” “skinny legs.” Some kids would literally go out of their way to trip me over.
00:00:29–00:00:57 · Alira: So I had my fair share of that. And then the same again with high school — “chicken legs,” “jelly legs.” “Spastic” was one of them, a very direct term. And also, I’m Aboriginal, and they would take that into account as well. So I've copped a fair share of that too — that’s where the racism comes in.
00:00:57–00:01:25 · Georgia Holloway (ORS State Manager – Psychology): Alira was referred to ORS because she was struggling a lot at the time with her mental health. She was struggling to cope with situations and tragic experiences in her past, and was looking for assistance on how to live to the best of her ability moving forward in her life. Some of the assistance we gave her was about finding coping styles that worked for her, the ability to experience her emotions, and work through them in a positive way.
00:01:26–00:01:33 · Georgia Holloway: And the ability for her to live the best life possible.
00:01:33–00:02:03 · Alira: Georgia is very authentic to work with. She gives me good tips and good guidelines on what to work on before we meet again in my session. She really listens and she’s very informative. She’s very caring, she’s very fun, she makes me laugh. She’s very insightful and really checks in on me — she’s really passionate about her job.
00:02:03–00:02:34 · Georgia Holloway: Alira is an amazing, inspirational young woman. She is so motivated to work out why she feels the way that she does, and to work out what she can do to make herself feel the best possible way that she can. From the work that we've put in place, and the work Alira’s done in sessions and between sessions, I have no doubt that she is going to go very far with her goal to become a cerebral palsy advocate and achieve all of the dreams that she set in place.
00:02:34–00:02:55 · Georgia Holloway: I think the future for Alira looks incredibly bright. We’ll continue sessions, helping her work through concerns whenever they arise. From what we've done so far and the way she’s going, I think the future looks very bright for her.
00:02:55–00:03:10 · Alira: ORS has helped change my life in regards to my mental health — with their support, feedback, and strategies — and helped me implement it in my everyday life and towards my dreams. I know anything is possible.
Services available
ADHD assessment and report
An assessment of cognitive functioning to determine whether a participant meets the criteria of ADHD, and a report outlining the recommendations.
ADHD assessment and report
An assessment of cognitive functioning to determine whether a participant meets the criteria of ADHD, and a report outlining the recommendations.
Autism assessment and report
An assessment and diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, and a report outlining the recommendations.
Autism assessment and report
An assessment and diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, and a report outlining the recommendations.
Decision-making capacity assessment and report
An assessment of a participant’s cognitive functioning and their capacity to independently make decisions regarding accommodation, finance, medical and services, and a report outlining the recommendations.
Decision-making capacity assessment and report
An assessment of a participant’s cognitive functioning and their capacity to independently make decisions regarding accommodation, finance, medical and services, and a report outlining the recommendations.
IQ assessment and report
An assessment and diagnosis of a participant’s intellectual disability and measurement of their intellectual capability, and a report outlining the recommendations.
IQ assessment and report
An assessment and diagnosis of a participant’s intellectual disability and measurement of their intellectual capability, and a report outlining the recommendations.
Neuropsychological assessment and report
This is a comprehensive assessment involving a range of tests to understand a participant’s overall needs. It involves cognitive, educational, memory, executive functioning and mental health assessments, and a report outlining the recommendations.
Neuropsychological assessment and report
This is a comprehensive assessment involving a range of tests to understand a participant’s overall needs. It involves cognitive, educational, memory, executive functioning and mental health assessments, and a report outlining the recommendations.
Psychoeducational assessment and report
An assessment to identify and understand a participant’s educational support needs by assessing their cognitive and academic functioning, and a report outlining the recommendations.
Psychoeducational assessment and report
An assessment to identify and understand a participant’s educational support needs by assessing their cognitive and academic functioning, and a report outlining the recommendations.
Psychological capacity assessment and report
An assessment of a participant’s mental health concerns, identifying any mental health disorders, and a report outlining the recommendations.
Psychological capacity assessment and report
An assessment of a participant’s mental health concerns, identifying any mental health disorders, and a report outlining the recommendations.
Recommendation Letter to inform NDIS Plan Review
Recommendation Letter to inform NDIS Plan Review
How are these services funded and accessed?
A range of funding options are available for our psychological assessment services.
The funding types and NDIS support categories that may covers these services include:
- Improved Daily Living
- Early Childhood Intervention
- Privately paid
Psychological assessments can be provided in person or via Telehealth for certain services across Australia.
To access these services, complete a referral form and our friendly intake team will match you a suitable psychologist for your first appointment.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Positive Behaviour Support and Psychology?
Am I eligible for funding from the NDIS?
How will psychological services build my capacity through the NDIS?
Many people who receive funding through the NDIS may be experiencing mental health and cognitive difficulties that are impacting their capacity to achieve their NDIS goals. Psychological services can help to identify and treat any psychological barriers to achieving NDIS goals through assessment or ongoing therapy.
Where can you provide services?
All psychological therapy services can be provided via Telehealth or face-to-face in either one of our offices or we can travel to you at your residence. Only mental health assessments can occur via Telehealth, otherwise all other psychological assessments must be provided face-to-face.
What is the difference between a psychologist and a neuropsychologist?
A psychologist is trained in providing evidence-based therapy to assist with improving an individual’s mental health, such as teaching strategies to manage their mood or improve their overall quality of life. A neuropsychologist specialises in the assessment of cognition for the purposes of diagnosis, and to support treatment planning and future interventions.
How does a mental health and neuropsychological assessment differ?
A mental health assessment assists in identifying whether an individual meets the criteria for a mental health disorder, such as anxiety and depression. A neuropsychological assessment is performance-based and involves a series of testing to assess cognition (e.g. intellectual functioning, attention, memory) and identify an individual’s cognitive strengths and weaknesses.
How can I work as a psychologist at ORS?
Join the team! We would love to talk to you about your career and how we can support you.
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