For people who have suffered a traumatic brain injury, or TBI, psychological testing is part of the process of health care after the injury occurs. When the brain is physically injured, it can affect how we behave, our abilities and skills, and how we manage our emotions. That is why a neuropsychological consultant in Springfield, NJ can help.
Things a Neuropsychological Consultant Looks at with TBI Patients
There are many symptoms that a TBI patient can report that a neuropsychological consultant would look at. Those may include things like having trouble with memory, not being able to think of the right word when speaking, having a lot of trouble with multi-tasking or focus, difficulty with things such as spelling and basic math, losing reading comprehension, having issues controlling anger, and emotional issues such as depression.
These are things that a doctor, who is primarily concerned with the state of the body, may call in a neuropsychological consultant for, who is primarily concerned with how the injury to the brain has impacted your behavior and abilities.
What Does It Mean for the Patient?
All of these things seem like they may be simple, but evaluating them can help doctors answer some more important questions. For example, a doctor may use the evaluation from a neuropsychological consultant to help determine if a TBI patient will be able to live on their own safely, or successfully re-enter the school. If the evaluation shows that the person is struggling with reading comprehension, for example, the doctor may determine that someone else must be available to give the person their medications.
What is Neuropsychological Testing Like?
TBI patients undergoing neuropsychological testing will be given a series of tests that evaluate things like multi-tasking ability, memory, do basic tasks on paper, and so on. The test can take several hours, but breaks are usually given. The test is then scored and the score is given to the doctor so that they can determine how well the patient can take care of themselves after their injury. The test score will also include a report revealing what areas the patient is struggling with, and what areas they are not struggling with.
Dr. Joshua Shifrin is a children’s neuropsychologist, and may offer consulting services like these for children suffering from TBI, such as athletes who suffered from concussion. Look through our website to learn more about Dr. Shifrin’s neuropsychological consulting services in Springfield, New Jersey. You can pay a visit to Facebook page for more information.
