Mental Health & Psychological Assessments

A registered psychologist conducts this assessment, combining a detailed clinical interview with standardized written questionnaires. It provides a formal diagnosis, which is what guides the care that follows. Available to clients aged 18 and over.

What it looks at: mood, anxiety, sleep, memories of the accident, how you are coping, and the effect on your daily routine, relationships, concentration and ability to handle stress.

Why it helps: a clear diagnosis means treatment is chosen for what you actually have, not a general guess. Many people also find real relief in hearing that what they are going through is recognized and has a name.

This assessment is recommended where memory or concentration has not returned to normal following a head injury or concussion. It involves a series of structured written and computer-based tasks, completed at your own pace with breaks whenever you need them.

What it looks at: memory, attention, how quickly you process information, word finding, and planning and organization.

Why it helps: forgetfulness and brain fog have several possible causes, and pain, poor sleep, medication and low mood can each produce them. This assessment identifies which of those is responsible, since each calls for a different approach. It also provides clear documentation of difficulties that are often overlooked.

One of our nurse practitioners conducts this assessment for adults. It combines a detailed clinical interview about your history, both current and going back to childhood, with standardised ADHD rating scales.

What it looks at: attention, focus, organisation, restlessness, impulsivity, and how long these difficulties have been present, alongside other conditions that can look similar, including anxiety, depression, sleep disorders, and the cognitive effects of a head injury.

Why it helps: many adults reach their thirties or forties suspecting something has always been different and never having had it looked at properly. Because our nurse practitioners prescribe, a diagnosis can be followed by treatment here rather than another long wait for a referral.

A psychiatrist, a medical doctor specialising in mental health, conducts this assessment. It is particularly valuable where medication forms part of your care, or where previous treatment has not produced the improvement you hoped for.

What it looks at: your diagnosis from a medical point of view, the medications you have tried and at what doses, side effects that are getting in the way, and what other options exist.

Why it helps: if you have been on the same prescription for a long time without improvement, this is where that gets reviewed properly. It is often the turning point for depression, anxiety and other mental health conditions that have not improved with treatment so far.

A Registered Social Worker or psychotherapist usually conducts this first assessment after a collision. It combines a supportive conversation with validated outcome measures, which are brief questionnaires that record how you are doing in a way that can be tracked over time. For most people it is a comfortable place to begin. We offer this assessment for children as well, from age four, with the approach adapted to the child’s age and a parent or guardian involved throughout.

What it looks at: what your life looked like before the accident and what has changed since, how you are sleeping and coping, who is around to support you, and what you most need help with now.

Why it helps: doing this early matters, because the difference between your pre-accident life and your current one is clearest while it is still recent. It also allows treatment to get started.

This assessment is intended for pain that has persisted well beyond the expected healing time for the original injury. It is particularly relevant where imaging has returned normal results, which can leave people feeling that their pain is not believed.

What it looks at: where the pain is and how strong it gets, what it stops you doing, its effect on sleep and mood, the medications you take and their side effects, and the tasks at home you now need help with.

Why it helps: it records your pain in measured terms rather than description alone, so it is properly documented. Pain and low mood also feed each other, and the assessment shows which treatments need to work together to break that cycle.

This assessment provides a structured review of your work capacity. It examines what type of employment is realistic for you at this stage of your recovery, and what would be needed to get there.

What it looks at: the jobs you have done and what you earned, what you can manage now both physically and mentally, the skills that would transfer to other roles, and whether retraining could open up new options.

Why it helps: if you are being pushed back to work before you are ready, this documents why that will not hold. If you want to work but cannot do your old job, it maps out what might be possible instead.

This assessment establishes your current capacity for work in a clear, documented way. An insurer or employer typically requests it to understand whether you are able to return to your job, and on what terms.

What it looks at: what your job actually demands of you, what you can currently manage and for how long, and the changes that would make a return possible, such as shorter shifts, different duties or a gradual build-up.

Why it helps: going back too soon often ends in another absence. This sets out a return that can actually last, and where returning is not realistic, it says so plainly and explains why.

For the most serious injuries. This determination unlocks far more funding for treatment and personal care than the standard limits allow, and it can change what is available to you for the rest of your life.

What it involves: several specialists, because the criteria cover the whole person. We coordinate every medical specialist the criteria call for, including orthopaedic surgeons, neurologists, psychiatrists, physiatrists, neuro-optometrists and chronic pain specialists, and we conduct the psychological and functional assessments ourselves.

Why it helps: we arrange every appointment and bring it together into one report, so you are not left coordinating specialists while unwell. It is a demanding process, and you will have someone with you through all of it.

One of our Registered Dietitians conducts this assessment, reviewing how you are eating now compared with before the accident and identifying what is getting in the way. Eating is one of the first things a collision disrupts, and one of the last things anyone asks about.

What it looks at: digestive problems following seatbelt or abdominal injury, jaw, TMJ or dental pain that makes chewing difficult, appetite lost to anxiety, low mood or medication, and any weight change or nutritional gap.

Why it helps: your body cannot heal well on inadequate nutrition, and poor eating slows recovery in every other area. This finds the problem and gives you a practical way to eat around your injuries.

Small sensors and a hand-held strength meter measure how you move, rather than someone estimating it by eye. Nothing about it is painful or invasive.

What it looks at: how you walk, your balance and risk of falling, how far your neck, back and shoulders move, and the strength of each side of your body compared with the other.

Why it helps: it gives an exact starting point, so we can measure improvement rather than guess at it. It also catches balance problems before they lead to a fall.