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Problems Getting Back to Work or Study after an Accident?

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After suffering a brain injury in a work or car accident, people often feel they are experiencing thinking difficulties and frequently find it challenging to return to work or study.

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A neuropsychological assessment helps to characterise these cognitive changes and offer relevant recommendations.

 

For example, we can offer advice with respect to what sort of work- or study-related activities might be suitable for you. We can also suggest strategies to assist with your return to work or study (such as with respect to modifications to your existing workplace, and concerning areas in which you may require assistance and/or more time to complete tasks).

In assessing work capacity we often we work in conjunction with public and private rehabilitation providers, insurance companies and legal representatives.

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Difficulties with School or University Work?

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You may be the kind of person who has always had problems with school work; these issues might include difficulty concentrating in class, numeracy issues, reading and writing problems or difficulties with written expression or comprehension. These challenges may be related to a particular medical problem that you are aware of, or you may have never had these issues investigated as you always just ‘got by’ and ‘coped’.

Problems with study can often become more apparent with increased challenges in Year 11 and 12 at school or when a person has commenced university. You may be eligible for assistance with your studies if you are diagnosed with cognitive deficits relating to a brain injury, another neurological problem, attention problems (e.g. ADHD/ADD) or a learning difficulty (such as a reading, spelling or numeracy disorder). Provisions offered can include extra time for exams and/or assignments, assistance during exams and ongoing assistance from a support person (often funded through a third party).

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Neuropsychological assessment may alternatively find that you have a weakness in some area/s but not a diagnosable problem, or in fact your performance may fall within the anticipated range; the focus will then be on identification of strengths and finding ways of ‘working around’ any cognitive weaknesses that have been identified.

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Do You Have Everyday Memory Concerns?

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People often experience memory lapses in their daily life, especially if they are stressed or very busy. Memory lapses might include losing your keys or mobile phone, forgetting what you just read or saw, losing your train of thought during conversation, failing to pass on a phone message, forgetting the name of someone, going to a different room in the house and losing track of why you were there or forgetting to buy a vital ingredient for your dinner in the supermarket.

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It is often difficult for people to distinguish between what represents normal, everyday memory lapses and what might indicate the start of something more worrying. Therefore, if you think you might be experiencing problems, more detailed and objective assessment of memory capacity is often warranted.

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If you are concerned either about yourself or a loved one, please consider whether neuropsychological assessment might be right for you.

 

Decision-Making Capacity

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Sometimes people with thinking problems (for example, due to a head injury, stroke, dementia, epilepsy or a learning delay) can have problems reliably making decisions about important issues.

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These difficulties can include problems deciding:

• whether to continue in a profession;

• who should be managing one’s finances and/or legal affairs;

• whether to make a will.

Other important questions include whether:

• to pass on the running of a family business;

• to continue living independently;

• to undergo a medical intervention/surgery;

• to continue driving.

 

This can be a particularly difficult area if someone does not realise that they have a problem with their thinking.

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Neuropsychological assessment of decision-making capacity and related areas of functioning can be very useful when concerns are raised about judgement, memory, reasoning and other relevant areas of functioning. Such an assessment often forms a part of an application for Guardianship or Enduring Power of Attorney made through the relevant State or Commonwealth Tribunal.

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Assessment can be requested by individuals themselves, by family members or by lawyers who are concerned about their client’s capacity to run a business, complete a will or make other important financial and/or legal decisions.

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If you have concerns about someone’s capacity to make important decisions, it is prudent to consider whether neuropsychological assessment might be helpful.

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Concerns about Dementia?

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Often people are referred to a Clinical Neuropsychologist after expressing concerns about developing dementia (for example, concerning family history) to their GP, neurologist or psychiatrist, who may feel further evaluation is warranted.

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A neuropsychological assessment is helpful in identifying early symptoms of dementia (which are typically cognitive in nature), but it may also put your mind at rest if no problems are found. Some people worried about dementia are often just experiencing age-related memory decline, which is normal (we all get more forgetful as we get older). There are also some reversible causes of memory problems that can be identified and addressed, such as stress or depression. Neuropsychological assessment also provides an accurate baseline of cognitive ability to allow for comparison if there are ongoing symptoms and further testing is required later.

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Medicolegal Assessment

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Professor Foster has worked internationally in the medicolegal arena for over 20 years. This has involved a considerable volume of neuropsychological assessment of injured individuals (on behalf of both plaintiff and defendant solicitors) and worker’s compensation insurance claims. Related to this caseload, Professor Foster has presented evidence as an expert witness at the Supreme Court, District Court and both Federal and State Tribunals. He has also provided evidence concerning capacity assessments for Medical and Allied Health Practitioner Boards.

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Rehabilitation

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After a neuropsychological assessment has been undertaken, being provided with a diagnosis or an understanding of what is happening is sufficient for some people.

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Others may prefer more follow-up and guidance with respect to potential remediation of their difficulties and/or implementation of strategies to help them tackle any ongoing difficulties.

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Guidance can be provided to both the affected individual and their carer (if appropriate). This can include:

• assistance with strategies designed to address cognitive difficulties (for example, practical guidance concerning the use of alarms and reminders on a smart phone/tablet/diary or calendar);

• guidance with cognitive remediation through the use of cognitively stimulating activities (e.g. computer- and/or internet-based games designed to enhance cognitive skills and other activities that improve cognition);

• provision of information about cognitive problems and lifestyle factors that might affect thinking skills and cognitive capacity;

• discussion of how the brain works and the effects of specific medical or psychiatric conditions on cognition.

 

Medicare rebates for rehabilitation/remediation sessions may be available if you have received a referral under a Mental Health Care plan from your GP, while private health insurance rebates are usually available for these sessions if you have ‘extras’ cover on your private health policy.

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Contact Us

Phone: 0404 074470

(includes messaging service)

Email: drjonathanfoster@gmail.com

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What We Can Offer You?

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Clinical neuropsychologists objective evaluate changes in thinking skills and related elements of behaviour that can occur due to a range of clinical conditions and situations.

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In other words, we measure how efficiently your brain is working.

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In addition to detailed history-taking, neuropsychological assessment involves the rigorous examination of cognitive skills including memory, attention/concentration, visuospatial skills, processing speed, language and executive functions (e.g. problem solving, planning, reasoning) in order to gain insight into neurocognitive/neurobehavioural deficits and academic- and work-related skills.

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Everyone has relative strengths and weaknesses. The goal of neuropsychological assessment is to determine where yours lie.

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Your test scores are compared to people of similar age and background in order to determine how your are functioning in different areas. In other words, the tests used in clinical neuropsychological assessment are standardised (which means they have previously been administered to groups of similar people without brain impairment, for purposes of comparison). They are also well researched; many neuropsychological tests are used all over the world.

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It is the use of these tests and the interpretation (in the context of all of the other information available) of the relevant test findings that provides the foundation of the neuropsychologist’s expertise.

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Your current level of functioning can be compared with your expected level of capacity (calculated using established, peer-reviewed methods). It can then be determined whether significant change/s of capacity have occurred, and if so in what areas of functioning. To answer this question, your pattern of results is analysed and combined with background information about your educational, occupational, medical and psychosocial history.

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This approach helps to exclude or assist in diagnosing a specific brain-related medical condition or provide valuable further information concerning an already established condition.

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Relevant clinical conditions include head injury, epilepsy, stroke, drug/alcohol use, neurodegenerative conditions (e.g. Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia) and other neurological, psychiatric and developmental disorders (such as learning difficulty or ADHD).

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Neuropsychological evaluation may include involves paper and pencil type tests, questionnaires and computerized assessment.

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Assessments take several hours (including interview and rest breaks), depending on the purpose of the assessment.

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Contact Us

Phone: 0404 074470

(includes messaging service)

Email: drjonathanfoster@gmail.com

 

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