Psychological Assessments & Testing
Are Certain Behaviors Causing You To Suspect That More Is Going On Than Meets The Eye?
Do you or your child battle with behaviors, emotions, or mental health challenges that you’re struggling to understand? Have you suspected a possible diagnosis of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), or a mood disorder for you or your child? Or are you a primary care physician or therapist looking for providers that offer psychological assessments?
Maybe you have noticed physical, social, and emotional symptoms that have disrupted your or your child’s daily life. Perhaps you waver between low energy and hyperactivity. Or it could be that poor performance at work or school has you wondering if cognitive obstacles are getting in the way of your success.
It’s likely that some degree of social anxiety has impacted your relationships. Maybe you have trouble regulating your moods or struggle with angry outbursts that are out of your control. If this is the case, you may grapple with co-occurring symptoms of anxiety and depression, though you can’t seem to pinpoint the cause of your distress.
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Alternatively, you may be a primary care provider or therapist in search of additional support for your clients. Perhaps you’re looking to refer your clients out to a clinician who can perform psychological evaluations. Or maybe you do not feel comfortable prescribing certain medications until you have an accurate diagnosis from a mental health expert trained in psychological testing.
Living with an undiagnosed disorder can make life unnecessarily difficult and isolating. You just want to understand why you or your child behave a certain way so that you can create an effective blueprint for the future. At Journey Mental Health, our clinicians specialize in psychological assessments that can provide you with the answers you’ve been looking for.
Most Neurological Disorders Are Misidentified And Misunderstood
When it comes to developmental, cognitive, and mood disorders, we as a culture are still very much in the process of effectively understanding and identifying a wide range of conditions. Take an autism diagnosis, for example. Many adults are just now discovering that some of their symptoms and challenges align with a diagnosis of ASD. And women, in particular, are finding out more often than ever that they were misdiagnosed or improperly assessed as children for certain emotional and behavioral issues.
Though it’s great that awareness surrounding these conditions is steadily rising—slowly chipping away at the stigma that has, for decades, obscured the importance of psychological testing—there is still a lot of misinformation and inaccuracy occurring within these diagnoses.
Unfortunately, many providers rely on their own judgment instead of expert evaluators to identify the source of their client’s issues. When this happens in the context of therapy, clients may get stuck during the course of treatment or could even be inaccurately diagnosed. And when diagnosing children, in particular, school systems often insist that a formal assessment is unnecessary even when parents are seeing their child struggle or perform at a level below where they should be.
Yet, psychological evaluations are not meant to invite scrutiny, judgment, or labels, but should be treated as opportunities to understand the neurological and emotional needs of each unique individual. This kind of testing needs to be done by a psychologist (doctoral level) who can provide an accurate diagnosis and resources that can offer additional support.
At Journey Mental Health, we pride ourselves on administering accurate and life-changing psychological assessments to our clients.
Psychological Assessments Are The Key To Understanding What’s Happening Beneath The Surface
In the context of psychological testing, it’s important to find a licensed psychologist who uses verified assessments that have been studied and refined for decades to ensure accurate diagnoses. Because so much information has been collected on a wide variety of populations, these assessments use thousands of data points to create norms that our clinicians use to determine the cause of specific symptoms and challenges.
At Journey Mental Health, there is no referral necessary to receive a psychological assessment. Instead, you would simply need to contact us to schedule an intake session (either in-person or over telehealth for your convenience), during which we would plan for a more extensive in-person evaluation for either you or your child. The psychological assessment itself will range anywhere from three to eight hours depending on what kinds of tests are required.
Testing is administered by one of our caring, objective, and professional psychologists or Certified Psychological Assistants, who will perform a battery of psychological evaluations to pave the way for a precise diagnosis. From there, an individualized treatment plan—including necessary accommodations—will be created that you can then provide for your employer, therapist, psychiatrist, healthcare provider, or child’s school.
Our psychological assessments are rigorously vetted within the mental health, medical, and scientific communities, and we are committed to providing customized treatment plans that will meet the needs of each individual. When our clients receive a proper diagnosis of a neurological, developmental, or mood disorder, they can get the support they need at home, work, and school so that they can be more productive, successful, and happier in their day-to-day lives.
Moreover, our clinicians are available to provide continued care to those clients looking to mitigate disruptive behaviors and improve their mental health through counseling. Oftentimes, a developmental or neurological diagnosis is accompanied by co-occurring issues of depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress, and we are devoted to helping our clients find relief from all of these challenges in their daily lives.
However, we also recognize that many of these individuals have already established a trusted connection with a therapist outside of Journey Mental Health, and we are not interested in removing clients from a therapeutic relationship that is working well for them. Instead, we want to ensure other clinicians that psychological assessments can provide clarity and direction for a client to take back to their established therapist and enrich the work they are already doing.
A psychological assessment can provide you with the insight you’ve been looking for. At Journey Mental Health, we view a diagnosis as a point of hope for you and your family—signaling the bridge between frustrating behaviors and a meaningful explanation for the obstacles that have impacted your or your child’s life for too long.
Assessment Options and Pricing
Our approach to assessments is not the “cookie cutter” approach that is often used by other companies. Our psychologists have combined experience of over 25 years of working closely with clients to provide an individualized assessment that best fits their needs and provides meaningful feedback about their concerns. We have found that the testing requests we receive often fall into one of the main categories described below, but if you do not see what you are looking for, or you are unsure which is the best fit, do not hesitate to reach out! Our staff is here to support and guide you through the whole process.
We accept all major credit cards and HSA funds.
We offer several payment plan options through CareCredit.
Adult Autism : $1000
This type of assessment is for those who suspect they are on the Autism spectrum and are seeking a diagnostic assessment to understand themselves better or to share with their medical or therapy providers. Includes an interview with a clinical psychologist who specializes in neurodiversity, objective measures, a follow-up session to discuss results, and a brief written summary of tests, diagnosis, and recommendations.
Adult ADHD - for medication/ therapy referral only: $700
This type of assessment includes a structured clinical interview, objective rating scales, and a foll0w-up session to discuss results. It also includes a brief written summary of tests, diagnosis, and a referral for medication/therapy.
Child Autism - under age 6 (ADOS-2) : $1000
This type of Autism assessment is typically for children under age 6 and either Autism is suspected or already diagnosed and an ADOS-2 is needed for ABA or other therapy services. Includes an interview, ADOS-2, a parent questionnaire, a foll0w-up session to discuss results and recommendations, and a written summary of tests, diagnosis, and referral for therapy or other services.
Other Types of Assessments:
Our psychologists can provide other types of assessments as needed, such as assessments for diagnostic clarity around mood disorders (depression/Bipolar) or anxiety/OCD. We also provide assessments for those in the process of Adoption, whether domestic or international, 0r those needing a personality assessment for a specific job. Cost is determined based on the scope of the assessment. Please contact us for more information about any assessment needs.
Insurance and Assessments
We accept BCBS PPO, UHC / Optum / UMR PPO, and Medicare. We do not participate in Medicaid, including TennCare.
Most insurances limit the number of testing hours they will cover to the bare minimum, and they require “medical necessity” to approve coverage for testing. This means testing for things such as an assessment required by your employer, parenting evaluations, or assessments for self-improvement or self-knowledge are not covered.
Adult Autism assessments are very rarely covered by insurance. Insurances do not cover the cost of academic testing (needed to assess learning disorders).
If your insurance company will not cover the type of assessment you are seeking, or they will not cover all of the components of that assessment, you have the option to self-pay all or a portion of the assessment.
Due to low reimbursement rates from insurances for assessments, many psychologists have opted not to work with insurance companies. This often results in long waitlists for assessments with the providers who do accept insurance, and we are no exception. We do not keep a waitlist longer than 3 months. If our waitlist is full, our staff will let you know when you will be able to contact us again to schedule.
Clients are strongly encouraged to contact their insurance company to verify testing benefits. Testing benefits are often limited or have a different co-pay or coinsurance rate than therapy benefits.
Comprehensive Child or Adult Assessment: $2,250
This type of assessment is for any student (Kindergarten through college) who is being assessed for the first time 0r someone who already has a diagnosis and needs accommodations for a 504 Plan, school, work, or standardized testing (ACT/SAT). It includes an interview with a clinical psychologist, formal assessments (including IQ and educational testing), and additional tests as needed to identify ADHD, Autism, specific learning challenges, or other diagnoses. It also includes a follow-up session to discuss results and recommendations along with a written psychological report that can be shared with a school, employer, or other providers.
Meet Our Testing Team
Erica Skidmore, Psy.D., HSP
Dr. Erica Skidmore completed her doctoral program in Southern California and then moved coast-to-coast to complete her internship and residency in Virginia Beach, VA, before settling in Chattanooga. She conducts psychological assessments for children and adults to assess a variety of concerns, including ADHD, Autism, learning challenges, cognitive functioning, and more. She is trauma-informed, an LGBTQIA+ ally, and neuro-affirming. Dr. Skidmore also has over 15 years of experience conducting assessments for parents pursuing international adoption and has been grateful to support many families in their adoption journeys. When she is not at the office, you can find her planting something in her yard, playing a board game with her family, or watching the Rams!
Ashley Salter, Psy.D., HSP
Dr. Salter graduated as the president of her Psi Chi chapter from Dalton State College with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a minor in Criminal Justice. She then went on to earn her Master’s of Arts from the Georgia School of Professional Psychology. She received her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from the Florida School of Professional Psychology at National Louis University in Tampa, FL. Dr. Salter completed her internship in Florida where she specialized in trauma-informed treatment of trauma and sexual assault survivors.
Dr. Salter’s specializations for psychological evaluations include clinical/psychological, psycho-educational, and forensic (disability, psychosexual, parental fitness, custody, and risk assessments. In her spare time, Dr. Salter spends time with her family, including her cat (Maui). She also enjoys photography (ask her about the photos in her office!).
Shannon Cosentino, Psy.D.
Dr. Shannon Cosentino graduated Summa Cum Laude with a bachelor’s degree from DePaul University in Chicago, IL. She then went on to earn her master’s and doctorate in clinical psychology at the Illinois School of Professional Psychology. She completed her doctoral internship in Colorado, where she gained experience working with clients throughout the lifespan, providing neuropsychological evaluations and expert testimony. Dr. Cosentino’s current work focuses on neuropsychological evaluations for children with neurodevelopmental delays and adults with dementia, stroke, and/or traumatic brain injuries.
Megan Brown, Ed.S., Certified Psychological Assistant
Megan graduated from The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a Specialist in Education degree and worked for 10 years as a School Psychologist in Tennessee and Georgia. She became a Certified Psychological Assistant in Tennessee in 2018, allowing her to work under a Licensed Psychologist to administer psychological testing measures. Megan recently completed a Master of Education in Counselor Education degree, and she also sees therapy clients at Journey. She loves animals, international travel, bolstering her mediocre Spanish skills, and spending time outdoors.
Are you ready to take the next step?