About Therapeutic Assessment

About Me

I am a licensed Clinical Psychologist with extensive training and experience working with children, adolescents and adults.  I have specialized training in working with families and conducting psychological assessments.  My focus since 2012 has been on combining my therapeutic and assessment skills to provide Therapeutic Assessments.  I have been working with the Therapeutic Assessment Institute in Austin, Texas through consultation and trainings.  I was recently certified in Therapeutic Assessment with adults.

Education

Ph.D. Clinical Psychology, University of Wyoming
M.S. Clinical Psychology, University of Wyoming
M.S.W. Clinical Social Work, California State University, Fresno

Therapeutic Assessment is a process in which the assessor and the client work together to answer the client's questions.  The client can be a single adult, family, a couple or a child/adolescent.  This process uses testing, a collaborative method and some therapeutic intervention based on the testing to help clients recognize, re-conceptualize and start integrating what is discovered in the assessment.  The data collected through the therapeutic assessment is provided in verbal feedback and gathered into a letter that can be used for treatment planning and intervention when requested.  This process is different from traditional assessment because the client is involved in all stages of the process and the testing is seen as a tool for intervention during the process.

This process is based on Therapeutic Assessment developed by Stephen Finn, Ph.D. and I encourage you to look at the research on this method and at the website of the Therapeutic Assessment Institute.  Research has shown that children, families, adults and couples have fewer problems and feel more connected after the assessment and the gains and changes made by the client seem to remain.