Assessment Services
Assessments
The purpose of a first meeting is to understand the difficulties that you are experiencing from your perspective. We want to make sure that this is the right place for you to get help. This session will also give you an opportunity to meet with a particular counsellor to ensure that you are comfortable with the working relationship. We encourage you to come prepared to ask questions. Together, we should be in a position to identify your needs and to establish an initial contract for services by the end of this meeting.
It is our clinical belief that a careful assessment will lead to an effective resolution of problems. We need to understand why you are having the difficulties that are leading you to seek help. Once we do this, a plan for intervention logically follows. Some difficulties will require a standardized form of assessment.
Standardized Assessments
We provide specific standardized assessments for some very specialized problem areas:
Trauma Assessment General (TAG)
For individuals who may have experienced the following: physical abuse/neglect, witnessing violence, involvement in or witnessing accidents, events that result in emotional shock or distressing symptoms.
Sexual Trauma Assessment (STA)
For individuals who may have experienced sexual trauma of any kind including: sexual abuse, sexual assault or rape, sexual exploitation by people in authority (such as teachers, doctors, ministers, employers)
Sexual Behaviour Problems in Prepubescent Children (SB)
When adults become concerned that children are engaging in sexual behaviour that is not age appropriate a formal assessment may be necessary. Consultation with relevant concerned adults will determine the necessity and degree of comprehensiveness of the assessment.
Sibling Sexual Abuse Assessment and Treatment
When children in a family have been involved sexually with each other all family members are affected. The definition of siblings and family vary. When caregivers are in a parental role and their children live together full or part time as family, the boundaries of safety and protection are viewed as the same. Regardless of the family configuration, sexual contact between children in a family is problematic.
Our Comprehensive Assessment includes the following:
- family assessment
- trauma assessment
- sexual behaviour or sexual offense assessment
- psychological component
- psychometric component
- review of all relevant collateral contacts information
- Formulation and writing of a report that outlines treatment recommendations
Our Comprehensive Treatment Program includes the following:
- Individual Treatment for each sibling involved
- Dyadic Treatment for parents and siblings involved
- Family Treatment for all family members. Can include the extended family
Note: In situations where adults have been abused by a sibling during childhood, this protocol would not be used. Instead, adults would undergo a Sexual Trauma Assessment. Current family issues would be addressed as part of the treatment plan.
For further information please contact ext. 222
Supporting Adoption Successes
The only thing worse for families and adopted children than not finding each other is not having an adoption work. Adoption breakdown compounds the trauma already experienced by a child who has lost one family and is a tragedy for the family who had hoped to share their lives with a child.
Our experience tells us that children who have the following histories are likely to be the most challenging and pose the greatest risk of poor attachment.
- early trauma and neglect
- preverbal trauma
- exposure to violent homes
- chaotic and unpredictable caregiving
- birth parents with substance abuse/addictions or major mental health disorders
- multiple placements prior to adoption
- inadequate prenatal care and early childhood medical care
- lack of emotional and physical nurturance in institutional care settings
- children who have been exposed to a large number of changes ie., culture, language, nutrition, travel
Our success with these families and children is a result of a comprehensive assessement and treatment model that recognizes how these issues manifest in the parent/child relationship. We assist parents in accurately identifying the child’s needs and correctly interprete the child’s behaviour. Our job is to assist parents to develop and implement specific interventions to facilitate attachment. We work with the family to strengthen their relationship in order to provide support to each other as well as the child.
Referral for this program should be made by completing the child and youth referral form and by contacting ext. 222