Every child is different, with their own strengths, challenges and support needs. If you have concerns about your child’s development, learning, behaviour, communication or emotional wellbeing, getting a clearer understanding of what may be going on can be an important first step.
At BetterCare Mental Health Services, our Assessment of Needs pathway brings together the appropriate clinical professionals to understand your child or adolescent’s individual needs, explore areas that may require further assessment and provide clear recommendations for support.
There is no one-size-fits-all assessment. We begin by listening to your concerns, understanding your child’s history and identifying which assessments are appropriate for them.
Depending on your child’s needs, this may include assessment for:
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Learning difficulties
Occupational Therapy needs
Speech and Language needs
Other developmental, behavioural or emotional concerns
The aim is to give you a clearer understanding of your child’s needs and practical recommendations for supporting them at home, in school and in everyday life.
Assessments are available in person and, where clinically appropriate, online.
You do not need to know which assessments your child needs before contacting us. The process begins with an initial clinical assessment and develops from there according to your child’s individual needs.
The first step is a clinical interview with a senior clinical psychologist.
This may involve the parent or parents, your child or adolescent where appropriate, or both.
During this appointment, we will:
listen to the concerns that have brought you to BetterCare™
discuss your child’s developmental, medical and educational history
explore their experiences at home, at school and in everyday life
identify their strengths as well as areas where they may need support
review any previous assessments, school reports or other relevant documentation
This gives the psychologist a fuller picture of your child before deciding what further assessment, if any, may be helpful.
The senior clinical psychologist will assess your child’s current presentation, strengths, difficulties and support needs.
From this, they will recommend the most appropriate next steps.
Not every child needs every type of assessment. For some children, one specialist assessment may be sufficient. Others may benefit from input from several different professionals.
If further assessment is recommended, this will be arranged with the appropriate member of BetterCare’s multidisciplinary team.
Depending on your child’s needs, this might include psychology, educational psychology, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy or other specialist input.
Each assessment looks at a particular aspect of your child’s development or functioning and contributes to the overall picture.
Once the recommended assessments have been completed, the clinicians involved review their findings.
Each professional contributes findings and recommendations within their own area of expertise.
Your reports may include:
assessment findings
identified strengths and areas of difficulty
diagnostic conclusions, where appropriate and supported by the assessment
your child’s identified needs
recommendations for home and school
recommendations for therapy, intervention or further assessment where required
The purpose of the assessment is not simply to produce a report. It is to help you understand what your child needs next.
Recommendations will depend on your child and may include:
strategies for home
school or learning supports
speech and language support
occupational therapy
sensory or regulation strategies
psychological or therapeutic support
further specialist assessment
medical or psychiatric assessment
Where psychiatric assessment or medical treatment may be appropriate, onward referral to BetterCare’s Child & Adolescent Psychiatry service may be recommended, subject to clinical suitability and referral requirements.
Our goal is for you to leave the process with a clearer understanding of your child and a practical pathway towards the right support.
The assessments recommended will depend on your child’s individual presentation and the findings of their initial assessment.
Your child will only be referred for assessments that are considered relevant to their needs.
An autism assessment explores areas including social communication, interaction, behaviour, interests, sensory experiences and developmental history.
The purpose is to understand your child’s individual profile and determine whether they meet recognised diagnostic criteria for Autism Spectrum Disorder.
BetterCare’s child and adolescent autism assessment involves two clinicians who contribute to the assessment through their respective professional roles and observations.
Findings are considered alongside your child’s developmental history and other relevant information before conclusions and recommendations are made.
An ADHD assessment explores difficulties involving attention, impulsivity, activity levels, organisation and executive functioning.
The assessment considers your child’s developmental history and how their difficulties affect them across different parts of their life, including home and school.
Where the criteria for ADHD are met, recommendations may include practical strategies, school supports, therapeutic input and further medical review where appropriate.
An educational assessment helps build a clearer picture of how your child learns.
It can identify areas of strength as well as difficulties that may be affecting their progress at school.
Depending on your child’s presentation, assessment may explore specific learning difficulties such as:
Dyslexia – difficulties affecting reading, spelling and written language.
Dysgraphia – difficulties affecting handwriting and written expression.
Dyscalculia – difficulties involving numbers and mathematical skills.
The findings can help parents and schools understand your child’s learning profile and identify appropriate educational supports and strategies.
We also have practical advice on preparing your child for a psycho-educational assessment.
An Occupational Therapy assessment looks at how your child manages everyday activities and whether anything is making participation or independence more difficult.
Depending on their needs, an OT assessment may explore:
coordination and motor skills
sensory processing
self-care
organisation
emotional and sensory regulation
participation at school
everyday routines at home
This may include investigation of concerns associated with dyspraxia, sensory processing difficulties and other functional challenges.
Recommendations are focused on helping your child participate more comfortably and independently in everyday life.
A Speech and Language Therapy assessment explores how your child understands and uses communication.
Depending on their needs, this may include:
understanding language
expressing thoughts and ideas
speech clarity
social communication
other aspects of communication development
The assessment helps identify areas where your child may need support and whether therapy or further investigation is recommended.
Parents may also receive practical strategies for supporting communication at home, while recommendations can be shared with school where appropriate.
That is quite common.
A child’s difficulties do not always fit neatly into one area. Learning, communication, sensory processing, attention, behaviour and emotional wellbeing can all interact.
If additional needs become apparent during the process, further specialist assessment may be recommended.
This is one of the benefits of a multidisciplinary approach: the pathway can develop as we learn more about your child rather than deciding in advance that every child should follow exactly the same process.
BetterCare brings together clinicians from different professional disciplines so that your child’s needs can be considered as a whole.
Depending on the assessments required, your child’s team may include:
Clinical Psychologists
Educational Psychologists
Occupational Therapists
Speech and Language Therapists
Child & Adolescent Psychiatrists
Each clinician assesses and reports within their own professional scope of practice.
Our clinicians hold the qualifications, registrations and professional memberships relevant to their roles, including CORU registration or membership of the Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI), where applicable.
By bringing these findings together, we can develop recommendations that reflect the whole child rather than considering each difficulty in isolation.
We offer flexible payment options designed to suit your budget and lifestyle — including a Book Now, Pay Later option with Klarna, so you don’t have to delay essential care.
For personalised payment options, please contact our office directly.
All BetterCare Child & Adolescent Psychologists are registered with the Psychological Society of Ireland and thus recognised by all major health insurers in Ireland.
Check out our availability and book the date and time that works for you.
If you are unsure whether this is the right service for your child, speak with our team first.
Once you’ve booked, you’ll receive a brief questionnaire by email. This helps us determine whether our Assessment of Needs is the right fit for your child’s needs. If it turns out that a different service would be more suitable, we’ll offer you a full refund or credit.
A BetterCare™ Assessment of Needs is a personalised clinical assessment pathway designed to help families better understand a child or adolescent’s strengths, difficulties and support needs.
A child may be experiencing challenges with learning, communication, attention, sensory processing, social interaction, behaviour or emotional wellbeing. Assessment helps explore what may be contributing to those difficulties and whether further investigation or a diagnosis may be appropriate.
An assessment may:
identify a specific condition or diagnosis
highlight areas that need further assessment
identify support needs even where diagnostic criteria are not met
At BetterCare™, the process begins with an initial consultation and psychological assessment. From there, the clinical psychologist will recommend any additional specialist assessments that may be appropriate.
Every child’s pathway is different, so the assessments recommended — and the overall cost — will depend on their individual needs.
No. BetterCare’s Assessment of Needs is a private clinical assessment pathway and is separate from the HSE statutory Assessment of Need process under the Disability Act 2005.
The HSE process has its own eligibility criteria, procedures and purpose.
BetterCare’s AON is designed to give families access to individualised clinical assessments, diagnostic assessment where appropriate, and coordinated recommendations for their child’s ongoing support.
It does not replace the statutory HSE Assessment of Need process or determine eligibility for HSE services. Families who wish to pursue an HSE Assessment of Need may do so separately.
Every BetterCare AON is tailored to the individual child, so there is no single fixed price for the complete assessment pathway.
The process begins with a clinical interview and psychological assessment with a clinical psychologist, at a cost of €1,800.
Following this initial stage, the psychologist will recommend any additional specialist assessments that may be appropriate.
The final cost will therefore depend on:
the assessments recommended
the number of specialist disciplines involved
the level of clinical assessment and reporting required
Some children may need only one additional specialist assessment, while others may benefit from a broader multidisciplinary assessment.
Families will be advised of the recommended pathway and the associated costs before any additional assessments are arranged.
Payment plans are available to help spread the cost of the assessment process.
BetterCare offers both in-person assessments and online appointments where appropriate.
The most suitable format will depend on your child’s age, presentation and the type of assessment being carried out.
Some assessments require direct observation, standardised testing or specific assessment conditions and will therefore need to take place in person.
Our clinical team will advise you on the most appropriate option for your child.
Once the recommended assessments have been completed, the clinicians involved will review their findings and prepare the relevant reports.
Depending on the assessments undertaken, reports may include:
a summary of the initial concerns and relevant background information
details of the assessments completed and their findings
diagnostic conclusions, where supported by the clinical evidence
your child’s identified strengths and areas of difficulty
recommendations for support at home and in school
recommendations for therapy, educational support or further assessment where appropriate
suggested next steps for ongoing care and review
The aim is to give families a clear and practical understanding of their child’s needs and the support that may help them moving forward.
BetterCare assessments are carried out by experienced, appropriately qualified clinicians working within their professional scope of practice.
Members of the Assessment of Needs team hold the relevant professional registrations or memberships required for their roles.
Where reports are being sought for a particular purpose — for example, for a school, State body or application for support — we recommend checking the specific requirements of that organisation in advance, as criteria can vary depending on the service or scheme involved.
An individualised pathway
Your child is assessed according to their own needs rather than being placed into a standard package of assessments.
Senior clinical oversight
The process begins with assessment by a clinical psychologist who helps determine the most appropriate next steps.
Multidisciplinary expertise
Where needed, assessments can be coordinated across a range of relevant clinical disciplines.
Qualified professionals
Assessments are carried out by appropriately qualified clinicians working within their professional scope of practice.
Clear reporting
Findings and recommendations are brought together to help you understand your child’s needs and what happens next.
Practical recommendations
Recommendations are designed to support your child at home, in school and in everyday life.
Flexible appointments
In-person and online appointments are available where clinically appropriate.
Flexible payment options
Payment plans are available to help spread the cost of the overall assessment process.
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