Insurance Providers and Lawyers

(The following information is written specifically with Insurance Providers and Lawyers in mind and a referral for these types of assessments usually comes from these sources. If you are involved in an insurance claim or legal proceedings and believe you require a Comprehensive Psychological Assessment please contact your insurance case manager or legal representative.)

Psychologists are legally recognized in Alberta and British Columbia as able to provide psychiatric diagnoses, as well as expert witness testimony before the courts regarding mental disorders and psychological functioning. Our psychologists in Calgary and Vancouver have specific training and expertise in a number of areas that are helpful to insurance companies and lawyers who have clients requiring a Comprehensive Psychological Assessment.

The type of assessment depends on the specific referral question, which is based on the needs of the individual, other health professionals, or the courts. Below is a list of specific types of Comprehensive Psychological Assessments and more detailed information can be found by clicking on the relevant link.

• Diagnostic,
• Neuropsychological,
• Disability and Injury Claims,
• Custody and Parenting Evaluations,
• Criminal Forensic.

Lawyers: The expertise that psychologist provide is sometimes required by the courts and other times is simply of benefit to your client. Some cases more obviously require a psychological assessment, such as if your client sustained an injury resulting in cognitive impairment or chronic pain, or if your client was psychologically harmed in some way (e.g., Posttraumatic Stress Disorder). Similarly, in the adversarial process of high conflict divorce proceedings it is prudent to have a custody evaluation, if not simply to give your client an edge in his or her case, certainly because it is in the best interest of the child(ren).

In other cases it may be less obvious that a psychological assessment is needed, such as having a pre-trial fitness assessment conducted to ensure that your client is in a state of mind to adequately participate in court proceedings. This is a more salient issue if your client has a history of mental illness or you suspect current mental health issues. If it is unclear whether your client requires a psychological assessment, please telephone to discuss the case with a psychologist.

Insurance Providers: Case managers at insurance companies often utilize our treatment services in response to their clients' mental health needs. Many of your clients also require comprehensive psychological assessments, such as a neuropsychological assessment in order to determine the presence of cognitive impairment. Another type of referral that we often see occurs when an individual has not shown improvement in psychological functioning despite having received treatment or when the individual’s symptoms appear disproportionately severe. In such cases, a comprehensive psychological assessment will provide an accurate diagnosis and help to determine factors influencing the individual’s psychological presentation (e.g., Personality Disorder, secondary gain, substance abuse), as well as examine the extent to which current mental health issues are due to a premorbid/pre-existing psychological problem. Additionally, insurance companies often refer cases that involve on-going litigation which has almost always been initiated by the claimant.

Please contact us if you require further information or would like to refer your client to a psychologist for an assessment.

Calgary: (403) 313-8309
Vancouver: 1-877-313-8309
You can also contact us by e-mail.