Autism Assessments

Autism is a neurological diagnosis that is present from birth, but typically is noticed in childhood and lasts for the individuals entire life. It is characterised by differences in understanding, interpreting and expressing social cues, social information and social rules. In addition, it is characterised by rigidity and inflexibility within behaviour, thoughts and rules/routines, along with sensory sensitivities and stereotyped behaviours

An Autism assessment allows an individual, in conjunction with the Psychologist, to assess for the symptoms related to Autism and explore the history of the challenges those symptoms have presented. This allows the Psychologist to accurately determine the presence of Autism to support a diagnosis. While an assessment from the Psychologist can help with obtaining a diagnosis, a Psychiatrist or Paediatrician is required to complete their portion of the diagnostic assessment, to determine a diagnosis.

What is Involved?

An Autism Assessment has a number of components involved to ensure accuracy of a diagnosis. For children, the following is done as part of the assessment:

  • Review of any medical, therapy or school reports.
  • Feedback from your child’s teacher, where possible.
  • Parent interview to gather the history relevant to the diagnosis.
  • Completion of an IQ assessment, where one hasn’t been done recently. (Typically the WISC-V).
  • Completion of an assessment designed to assess specific Autism symptoms (typically the ADOS).
  • Observing the child within their session and how they interact.
  • A feedback session to explain the results.

For adults, the assessment process is very similar, involving:

  • Review of any medical, therapy or past school reports where available.
  • Feedback from or an interview with a close person in your life. Ideally this may be a parent or someone who has watched you grow up, but may also be a partner or close friend where someone from your family is unavailable.
  • Client interview to gather the history relevant to the diagnosis.
  • Completion of an IQ assessment (Typically the WAIS-IV).
  • Completion of an assessment designed to assess specific Autism symptoms (typically the ADOS).
  • Observation of how you engage and your behaviours within your appointments.
  • A feedback session to explain the results.

It is important to understand that for a diagnosis of Autism to be made, it requires at least 2 clinicians to be involved. This is usually made up of:

  • Either a Paediatrician (for children) or a Psychiatrist (for older teenagers or adults)
  • Either a Psychologist, Occupational Therapist or Speech Pathologist.
  • Where language delays or concerns are present, a Speech Pathologist is required to be involved.

At Anastasi Psychology, we provide Autism Assessments for ages 12 and above. Your assessment report can be used in conjunction with a Paediatrician or Psychiatrist report to attain a diagnosis.

How Long Does the Assessment Take?

Prior to the assessment, you will be emailed some forms to complete including a general intake and consent form, and a form that asks questions about background history, including medical history. Please allow up to an hour to complete all forms. We may also request information from others including teachers, and will need your consent to gather this information.

Once everything is completed prior to the assessment, the in-person part of the assessment is split into two halves – the clinical interview and the ‘hands on’ assessments (the IQ assessment and ADOS). While the whole assessment can be completed in one day, for child assessments we normally recommend the clinical interview is completed without the child present so they are not having to spend too long waiting in the clinic. The clinical interview can take up to 2hrs to complete, whereas the ‘hands on’ assessments typically take 3hrs to complete (however these can at times be longer or shorter depending on factors that arise on the day).

After the assessment, a comprehensive report is completed and discussed with you during a 30-45min feedback session.

Why Would I Need An Assessment?

Whether for yourself or for your family member, most people who are seeking a diagnosis of Autism do so for the following reasons:

  • They want to understand why they are experiencing difficulties with certain aspects in their life and a diagnosis may help explain the reason why.
  • They want a diagnosis to help inform the strategies needed to help cope with challenges they experience. This may include therapy strategies tailored with Autism in mind, or medication treatments.
  • For children, they may benefit from a diagnosis to help school understand the presenting concerns and for strategies within school to be implemented.
  • Due to long waitlists at Paediatrician and Psychiatrist clinics, getting an assessment with a Psychologist may help them confirm a diagnosis sooner and implement non-medical strategies sooner, while waiting for an appointment with a Paediatrician or Psychiatrist for medical strategies.
How Much does the Assessment Cost?

An Autism assessment takes a Psychologist approximately 8hrs to complete, which includes the time needed to conduct any interviews, complete the IQ and ADOS assessments, review past reports/information, score the assessments and write the report. Currently, this means an Autism assessment with Anastasi Psychology will cost $1760.