Psychological Testing & Neuropsychology Services
Neuropsychology focuses on the assessment of how a person's brain is working. Although brain scans such as CT or MRI can show physical damage to the brain, changes in how the brain works (for example, memory or attention) often do not match the damage shown on a scan.
A neuropsychological evaluation can detect subtle changes in thinking compared to what would be expected for the person being tested. Reasons patients may be referred include cognitive ability after stroke or head injury, type and severity of dementia, existence of adult learning disability, and the effect of thinking problems on everyday activities such as managing money, driving, and living independently.
What to Expect at Denver Health
A neuropsychological evaluation consists of a number of tests of different thinking processes. This may include intelligence tests, attention, memory, reasoning and other thinking skills. An evaluation may require several hours to assess the various skills involved in processing information.
The Neuropsychology Service provides evaluations for adult and geriatric inpatients and outpatients. Referrals from doctors outside of the Denver Health system or referrals for older adolescents are seen on an individual basis.