You are being seen for a voluntary psychological/neuropsychological evaluation, and you are free to withdraw from or decline to continue with testing at any time. Incomplete evaluations or suboptimal engagement in testing can limit the formation of diagnostic conclusions. 

 

The goal of this clinical neuropsychological evaluation is to identify strengths and weaknesses that may help inform treatment and care with your referring provider. Dr. Mouras does not provide treatment or medication as a neuropsychologist. Unless specifically contracted as a forensic evaluation prior to scheduling, this evaluation does NOT determine if cognitive changes or concerns are due to a workplace accident; furthermore, this evaluation does NOT determine disability status or capacity for decision making. 

 

Diagnostic conclusions may include that no diagnosis is warranted if cognitive performances are within typical ranges for your age and education. In this case, testing results may reflect a comprehensive baseline that can be useful as a comparative reference for any future concerns. Your test performance is compared to the performances of those most similar to you in age and education. This allows a better understanding of how your thinking areas are functioning and if that functioning falls within typical or atypical ranges. 

 

The cognitive concerns you experience can be impacted by multiple factors, such as sleep disturbances, chronic pain, and clinically significant mood symptoms. Such factors may better account for your cognitive concerns than a neurocognitive disorder, a neurodegenerative process, or ADHD; however, these factors may also co-occur with each other. 

 

The evaluation includes a clinical interview, record review, and testing of thinking areas (including attention, motivation, motor functioning, language and spatial skills, processing speed, executive functioning, memory, intellectual functioning) as well as emotional or personality functioning. Testing involves standardized administration of research-supported measures and includes formats such as paper and pencil tests, computer tests, and clinical questionnaires. You may request further information about any of these procedures.

 

During testing, some tests may feel easy while others feel difficult; additionally, you may not finish every item or answer every question correctly. It is important that you try your best on all test items. Measures of effort are included in every neuropsychological evaluation. If anything impacts your ability to give your best effort, results of testing may reflect minimal indicators of cognitive abilities and limit formation of diagnostic conclusions. This may include if you are experiencing atypical pain, significant emotional distress, or have any other reason why you may not be able to engage in testing as you would under normal conditions. 

 

As discussed at the time of appointment scheduling, the duration of this evaluation is approximately 4 hours, and you are allowed breaks as needed. However, this duration can be impacted by your response speed, your ability to stay on-track and on-topic, and the length of breaks. If necessary to give your best effort, you may finish the evaluation on another day; keep in mind, though, that completing testing in a single day is ideal to limit other factors that may impact your performance. 

 

Feedback is provided at a later date, which will be scheduled prior to the end of testing. You are welcomed and encouraged (but not required) to bring your spouse or significant other to the interview and the feedback.