Psychoeducational Assessments in Ontario

Is your child or teen struggling with learning, reading, spelling, writing, math, comprehension, or language processing?
Does your child or teen have difficulty with attention, often loses focus, is easily distracted, has trouble following instructions, takes an usually long time to do tasks, or is unable to complete assignments?
A psychoeducational assessment might provide an answer.

Welcome to CASE Psychology, a leading provider of diagnostic assessments, conveniently located in Burlington, Ontario, serving the Halton region and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), and specialized in administering psychoeducational assessments for children and adolescents, age 5 through to age 20.

A psychoeducational assessment is a thorough evaluation of your child’s Cognitive, Academic, Social, and Emotional facets, identifying your child’s learning profile, their strengths and weaknesses. It comprises a series of standardized psychological tests administered by a mental health professional. Some sessions in a psychoeducational assessment may be virtual, and some sessions will be in-person.

A psychoeducational assessment, also called a “psych-ed assessment” or a “learning disability assessment”, is used to diagnose:

• a learning disability (or a learning disorder) in reading, also known as dyslexia
• a learning disability (or a learning disorder) in writing, also known as dysgraphia
• a learning disability (or a learning disorder) in math, also known as dyscalculia
• intellectual disability
• attention concerns like ADHD (Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder), identifying which type of ADHD may be present, as well as the severity
• common social-emotional concerns, such as anxiety

What to expect in each session of a psychoeducational assessment
Our psychoeducational assessment is made up of four sessions, and typically takes about 8 weeks from the first session to the final session.

INITIAL CONSULTATION: Our psychoeducational assessment starts with a 1-hour online video initial consultation, with the parent and the clinician. If your child is 12 years of age, or older, they will be required to attend this initial consultation so that the psychologist can discuss and obtain consent. You’ll provide the child’s mental and medical history, developmental milestones achieved and missed through the early years, and of course, the details of the presenting concerns. The psychologist will let you know if they need you to submit any documents as additional sources of information, such as school report cards.

IN-PERSON TESTING: A few weeks after the initial consultation, your child will attend two 3-hour in-person testing sessions, usually on different days, at our mental health clinic at 4145 North Service Road, Burlington, Ontario. Only the child is required in the testing room with the psychologist. Parents are welcome to wait in any of our waiting areas, or you may leave your child at our clinic and return at pickup time. During each in-person testing session, the clinician administers standardized psychological tests that assess several areas of your child’s cognitive, academic, social, and emotional facets.

FEEDBACK MEETING: A few weeks after your child’s in-person testing sessions, the psychologist completes the psychoeducational assessment report, and hosts the 1-hour online video feedback meeting, usually with only the parent(s). The psychologist presents the testing results and your child’s official diagnoses (if any). The psychologist describes comprehensive recommendations, some of which may be targeted to your child’s school, college, or university. The psychoeducational assessment report is shared with you only, and you may then share the psychoeducational assessment report with your child’s school, college, or university, so that the educational institution may provide accommodations to better support your child in class and uniquely enhance their learning environment.

What is the cost of a psychoeducational assessment in Ontario?
There is some variation in the total cost of a psychoeducational assessment in Ontario, generally based on the psychologist’s hourly rate, and the psychologist’s time needed to administer the psychoeducational assessment. Psychologists within larger cities typically charge higher hourly rates than psychologists in more rural areas. As of 2024, a psychoeducational assessment in Ontario may cost anywhere from $2000 to $4400.
At CASE Psychology, our psychoeducational assessment costs a total of $ 3290.
We do not require a deposit at the time of booking your appointments.
Your payment method on file is charged for each session, on the day of that session, similar to pay-as-you-go.

Does OHIP cover the cost of a psychoeducational assessment in Ontario?
Your child’s school, college or university may be able to provide a psychoeducational assessment that is government-funded or institution-funded. However, wait times often exceed a year, and there is no guarantee when, or if, your child may be attended to.
A psychoeducational assessment provided by a private clinic, such as CASE Psychology, is not covered under OHIP in Ontario, but we can provide your child or teen with a comprehensive psychoeducational assessment within a few weeks or months, guaranteed.

Will my extended health insurance cover the cost of a psychoeducational assessment?
We recommend that you check with your insurance provider whether your child has extended health insurance coverage for registered psychologist services. In addition to the dollar amount of coverage your child may have, you should be aware of your insurance policy’s renewal date, and whether your insurance provider requires a medical doctor’s referral in order to reimburse you for mental health services.

Does my child need a doctor’s referral for a psychoeducational assessment at CASE Psychology?
No – CASE Psychology is a private mental health clinic – we do not require a doctor’s referral for any of our services.

Ready to book your child or teen’s psychoeducational assessment?

CASE Psychology features a compassionate team of registered psychologists and psychological associates, each with extensive training and experience in assessment and diagnosis, mental health, child development, brain development and learning. This allows us to provide detailed psychoeducational assessments, with recommendations for support across all areas of your child’s functioning, including learning, emotion, social, attention, behaviour, and daily life skills.
Questions? Ready to book a psychoeducational assessment for your child or teen?
Call us at 647-299-2273, or email info@casepsychology.com to get started!