A mental health assessment is a conversation between you and mental health professionals to help decide what kind of support you need. You’ll need to have a mental health assessment when you go to any mental health service for help.

Information: A mental health assessment is not a test or an exam. A mental health assessment can help you identify disorders and can connect you with mental health providers who can give you the care you need. 

We believe that regular behavioral health screening in primary care can help diagnose problems early on. Our purpose is to connect you with appropriate care, either virtually or in your community, so you can get back to living your best life. Each mental health condition has specific signs and symptoms, however, some common symptoms that lead to screening include the following.

• Sleep changes – sleeping more or less than usual, or having difficulty falling or staying asleep.
• Mood changes – feeling a long-lasting sadness or low mood, or noticing bouts of extremely high and low moods.
• Anxiety – excessive worrying or fear.
• Confusion – difficulty concentrating or taking in new information.
•  Apathy – losing interest in activities that usually bring you joy.

We want to make sure that your treatment is specific to your needs, so your mental health evaluation will include several steps. Evaluations typically consist of a written questionnaire, and interview questions. Commonly used tools of diagnosis for mental health disorders:

• Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) – the most common screening tool to identify depression.
• Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS) – used to assess suicide risk.
• GAD7 – a screening tool and symptom severity measure for the four most common anxiety disorders (generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social phobia(s) and post-traumatic stress disorder)