Dr. Jim Roche provides autism diagnostic services for children, adolescents and adults suspected of having autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or what was previously referred to as Asperger's Disorder.
Assessment costs vary from case to case, but do not exceed $1,950. Assessments for school related services for children and adolescents may need to include a psychoeducational assessment as well, which is required by school districts to develop an appropriate IEP (Individual Education Plan).
Additionally, Dr. Roche provides treatments and consultation for adults with ASD. This includes individual and couples therapy/counselling.
Finally, Dr. Roche provides behavioural consultation for problematic behaviours which present difficulties in daily life for you, your child or partner. Dr. Roche is a member of the ACT RASP and his services are covered by ministry funding for children under 19.
Please visit his webpage at www.relatedminds.com for further information
Showing posts with label autism diagnosis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label autism diagnosis. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 25, 2016
Saturday, October 12, 2013
Autism Diagnosis for Children in BC
How can I get a diagnosis for my child if I think they have autism or Asperger's Disorder?
Diagnostic services are provided both by the government through programs at facilities such as Children's Hospital, and through private practitioners. Usually licensed or registered psychologists trained in administering specialized tools to help in the diagnostic process. These include the ADOS and ADI-R. Not all psychologists have these tools available. With many children a psychoeducational assessment is also necessary, in order to provide information necessary to develop an Individualized Education Plan in his or her school.
Do you provide these diagnostic services? And is there a long wait?
I provide these services for children from the age of 5 up, including services for teens and adults as well. The process is very time consuming, however I am usually able to see children on the weekend, and complete the parent portions in the evenings. There is usually a 3-4 week wait, sometimes less, and the full report is completed in about 10-14 days after the assessment. This includes a psychoeducational assessment so your child can be "coded" by the school and receive appropriate support there.
How much does a diagnosis cost?
A full diagnostic battery costs approximately $3,400.00 This can vary, as some children need additional assessments to rule out speech and language disorders (auditory processing for instance) and others may need less. The battery of tests are designed to meet your child's needs.
What experience do you have with children with autism spectrum disorder?
I have been working in this field for over twenty years, including working with Michelle Winner (Social Thinking) in California, serving as a SELPA (several school districts combined) behaviour management specialist, a classroom teacher, school psychologist and BC provincial consultant on autism and related disorders through POPARD. For the past 5 years my work has been in private practice and consulting with various government agencies here and in the US. Additionally I have been focusing on working with adults with high functioning autism and Aspergers in both the college/university setting and workplace for several years. Being familiar with autism over the lifespan has greatly increased my understanding of both the assessment process and interventions.
What supports are available for children in BC who have a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder?
The BC Ministry of Children and Family Services provides a list of services that are available. Primarily the Ministry provides funding which parents are able to direct to appropriate services for their child with autism. You can click here to see what expenses are covered: http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/autism/pdf/eligible_expenses.pdf
A more comprehensive Handbook for Parents of Children with Autism can be found at this webpage:
http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/autism/pdf/autism_handbook_web.pdf
For children under 6 years of age the Ministry provides $22,000 of services. For children over 6 they provide $6,000.00 per year.
In addition to these services (which can include family therapy, parent training and in home consultations) your child should also be eligible for "coding" in the school which provides for school based funding leading to appropriate supports, and often parents are additionally eligible for tax benefits.
How can we arrange an assessment?
Assessments provided by the government are arranged by calling the appropriate agencies. There are often waiting lists. If you are interested in a private assessments please feel free to contact me for an appointment. Appointments for autism assessments usually start with a one hour interview where we meet and develop a plan together. I can be contacted through my web page at www.relatedminds.com, or by phone at 778.998-7975 emails are sent to relatedminds@gmail.com
My autism specific webpage is found at: http://www.relatedminds.com/autism/
Diagnostic services are provided both by the government through programs at facilities such as Children's Hospital, and through private practitioners. Usually licensed or registered psychologists trained in administering specialized tools to help in the diagnostic process. These include the ADOS and ADI-R. Not all psychologists have these tools available. With many children a psychoeducational assessment is also necessary, in order to provide information necessary to develop an Individualized Education Plan in his or her school.
Do you provide these diagnostic services? And is there a long wait?
I provide these services for children from the age of 5 up, including services for teens and adults as well. The process is very time consuming, however I am usually able to see children on the weekend, and complete the parent portions in the evenings. There is usually a 3-4 week wait, sometimes less, and the full report is completed in about 10-14 days after the assessment. This includes a psychoeducational assessment so your child can be "coded" by the school and receive appropriate support there.
How much does a diagnosis cost?
A full diagnostic battery costs approximately $3,400.00 This can vary, as some children need additional assessments to rule out speech and language disorders (auditory processing for instance) and others may need less. The battery of tests are designed to meet your child's needs.
What experience do you have with children with autism spectrum disorder?
I have been working in this field for over twenty years, including working with Michelle Winner (Social Thinking) in California, serving as a SELPA (several school districts combined) behaviour management specialist, a classroom teacher, school psychologist and BC provincial consultant on autism and related disorders through POPARD. For the past 5 years my work has been in private practice and consulting with various government agencies here and in the US. Additionally I have been focusing on working with adults with high functioning autism and Aspergers in both the college/university setting and workplace for several years. Being familiar with autism over the lifespan has greatly increased my understanding of both the assessment process and interventions.
What supports are available for children in BC who have a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder?
The BC Ministry of Children and Family Services provides a list of services that are available. Primarily the Ministry provides funding which parents are able to direct to appropriate services for their child with autism. You can click here to see what expenses are covered: http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/autism/pdf/eligible_expenses.pdf
A more comprehensive Handbook for Parents of Children with Autism can be found at this webpage:
http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/autism/pdf/autism_handbook_web.pdf
For children under 6 years of age the Ministry provides $22,000 of services. For children over 6 they provide $6,000.00 per year.
In addition to these services (which can include family therapy, parent training and in home consultations) your child should also be eligible for "coding" in the school which provides for school based funding leading to appropriate supports, and often parents are additionally eligible for tax benefits.
How can we arrange an assessment?
Assessments provided by the government are arranged by calling the appropriate agencies. There are often waiting lists. If you are interested in a private assessments please feel free to contact me for an appointment. Appointments for autism assessments usually start with a one hour interview where we meet and develop a plan together. I can be contacted through my web page at www.relatedminds.com, or by phone at 778.998-7975 emails are sent to relatedminds@gmail.com
My autism specific webpage is found at: http://www.relatedminds.com/autism/
Saturday, July 13, 2013
Child, Adolescent and Adult Testing for Autism / Aspeger's Disorder
This week two patients came to me and said they wanted an assessment for autism. Actually one said autism, this was an assessment for a teenager, and another wanted an assessment for Aspeger's Disorder. Both were sent by their family physicians, which is how I usually get my referrals.
Both wanted to know what it consisted of and how much it would cost. Those are very reasonable questions, but not so easy to answer. An assessment usually is completed to answer a specific question, and most of the time a diagnosis alone isn't worth spending time or money on. So I usually ask, "What do you need this diagnosis for?"
With a child an autism diagnosis, and it doesn't matter if we are looking at "classical autism" or Asperger's Disorder, High Functioning Autism or whatever term you may be using (it is now all one diagnosis on a spectrum in the new Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, the DSM-5) if it's to help with education you often need both an assessment for autism using the ADOS (Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule) and the ADI-R (Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised) to qualify for school and provincial services here in British Columbia, as well as a full psychoeducational assessment. This is necessary to help determine what interventions to use in the school to help the student learn. This is a very comprehensive procedure and can cost between $2,600 and $3,400.00
I ask about this because the school may be able to complete the psychoeducational assessment component, which significantly reduces the cost. Or, maybe a psychoeducational assessment has already been completed!
Adults, on the other hand, often come to me for an assessment and diagnosis because they want to understand themselves and be able to explain behaviours. They just want to know why they might be doing the things they are doing. In this case I'm often reluctant to conduct a time consuming and expensive assessment. An assessment should not just tell you what you have, it should tell you what to do about it! Adult assessments often are used in employment as well, to get accommodations and consideration at the work place.
A diagnosis of adult autism or Asperger's Disorder (sometimes called Asperger's Syndrome) means not just seeing if you meet a list of criteria or symptoms, it means ruling out the many other possible disorders that look very much like Asperger or High Functioning Autism. This means completing not only the usual assessment for autism/Aspergers but also personality assessments, some neuropsychological tests and often speech and language assessments, as some specific speech and language deficits can look just like autism/Asperger's.
Just like a student, who would use the assessment/test results to develop an educational plan (an IEP or Individual Education Plan is developed by the school based upon the assessment results) an adult should also expect to be able to use their test results to make a life intervention plan, use the results to come up with a plan to improve issues at work, home, in relationships or recreation.
Assessments are used to make plans and look forward, not just to diagnose. I would agree with parents who object to getting a "label" but would urge them to get a good diagnosis and use it to make a plan.
For more information about the diagnostic services I provide you can visit my web page at www.relatedminds.com. You will find information about autism services for children, adolescents and adults and assessment services. You can also call me at 778.998-7975 or email me at relatedminds@gmail.com
I provide assessment services, diagnosis of autism/Aspergers for provincial funding, parent education, behaviour management programs and individual and couple therapy for adults with high functioning autism and Asperger's Disorder.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Raising awareness of adult autism | BPS
Raising awareness of adult autism | BPS
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Asperger's Disorder are lifelong conditions that in the UK alone affects over 500,000 people. In the UK there are a number of current government sponsored initiatives to raise awareness of adult autism and Asperger's. Often ASD is overlooked when adults are seen in mental health facilities, and many medical practitioners are unaware and untrained to administer tests and measures that effectively diagnose these conditions. While most professionals know something about autism, they do not necessarily understand how autism affects people, and these effects are what really matter in day to day living.
The British Psychological Society has developed a series of e-learning modules to raise awareness of adult autism. These are delivered through their BPS Learning Centre, the modules appeal to a range of learners, including members of the public. The modules concentrate on raising awareness, delivering knowledge and understanding from introductory to specialist levels. These are excellent training programs to start with, especially when it comes to adult autism, as there are so few good recourses out there. The link to the British Psychological Society site is above.
The three e-learning modules are:
• Building awareness of adult autism
• Supporting adults with autism (coming soon)
• Working with adults with autism (suitable for Practitioner Psychologists and other professionals) (coming soon)
If you are in need of assessment, diagnosis and treatment for autism and its effects on adults in the home, in relationships or in the work place, please feel free to contact me.
Dr. Jim Roche, Registered Psychologist
RelatedMinds Educational Services
www.relatedminds.com
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Asperger's Disorder are lifelong conditions that in the UK alone affects over 500,000 people. In the UK there are a number of current government sponsored initiatives to raise awareness of adult autism and Asperger's. Often ASD is overlooked when adults are seen in mental health facilities, and many medical practitioners are unaware and untrained to administer tests and measures that effectively diagnose these conditions. While most professionals know something about autism, they do not necessarily understand how autism affects people, and these effects are what really matter in day to day living.
The British Psychological Society has developed a series of e-learning modules to raise awareness of adult autism. These are delivered through their BPS Learning Centre, the modules appeal to a range of learners, including members of the public. The modules concentrate on raising awareness, delivering knowledge and understanding from introductory to specialist levels. These are excellent training programs to start with, especially when it comes to adult autism, as there are so few good recourses out there. The link to the British Psychological Society site is above.
The three e-learning modules are:
• Building awareness of adult autism
• Supporting adults with autism (coming soon)
• Working with adults with autism (suitable for Practitioner Psychologists and other professionals) (coming soon)
If you are in need of assessment, diagnosis and treatment for autism and its effects on adults in the home, in relationships or in the work place, please feel free to contact me.
Dr. Jim Roche, Registered Psychologist
RelatedMinds Educational Services
www.relatedminds.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)