What Is a Mental-Health Assessment?
Simply put, a mental-health assessment is an appraisal of the emotional and social functioning of an individual. It examines the person's self-concept, personality style, relationships, satisfaction with their life, and ability to cope with stress and changes.
What can I expect of a mental-health assessment?
There are times when an individual or family member desires a mental-health assessment to understand what is, for them, an area of conceren or distress. Often, a mental-health assessment targets the individual's functioning in relation to a referral reason. For example, a child may be referred for an assessment to ascertain what level of placement could best meet his or her needs. Or an underage couple may be assessed to judge their maturity for marriage. In these cases, specific areas of concern are focused on in the context of a general appreciation of the individual's emotional status. In every situation, a skillful assessment is able better to identify a concern, as well as focus on strengths, so that the individual can take steps towards control or remediation.
What's the difference between a mental-health assessment, a psychiaric assessment, and a psychological assessment?
There is a lot of overlap in these different assessments. All judge the level of functioning. All can diagnose whether there is a specific challenge the individual is facing and what that challenge may be.
Specific licenses and training indicate the specializations of the person doing the assessment. A psychiatrist is a doctor of medicine and can prescribe and monitor medication. A psychologist can offer different kinds of testings to measure cognitive functioning and other targeted areas. A psychoanalyst helps the individual deal with psychic conflicts, often from the past. A Marriage, Family, and Child Therapist looks at systems, especially the family system, and helps the individual and system find health. I am also a Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.), so I also can deal with issues of spirituality.
Who has access to this information?
A mental-health assessment is always confidential. This means that the individual needs to sign a specific release of information before the professional can share anything shared in the assessment process. The individual also has the right to limit what the professional is able to share. The only exceptions are the professional's duty to report suspected child or elder abuse, specific threats to a life, or, in some cases, if a judge orders certain information to be divulged.
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