What questions should I ask my clinician?

3 min read

In a nutshell

It is easy to forget questions during an assessment appointment. Writing down the things that matter most to you beforehand can make the conversation easier.

Questions about the assessment

You might ask:

What information are you looking for during this assessment?
How does your assessment process work?
Will we need more than one appointment?
Is there anything else you need from us?
Are there other possible explanations you will also be considering?

Questions about the next steps

You may also want to ask:

Roughly how long is the process likely to take?
Will you need further information from school or another professional?
When should we expect to discuss the outcome?
What happens after the assessment is complete?

If ADHD is diagnosed

Questions might include:

What does this mean for how we understand and support our child?
What treatment or support options should we discuss?
Are there other professionals you recommend involving?
What support may be helpful at school?
What should we expect in terms of follow-up?

If ADHD is not diagnosed

You could ask:

What else might explain the difficulties we are seeing?
Are there other assessments you recommend?
Is there anything we should monitor over time?
When should we seek further advice?

Good to know

There are no silly questions during an assessment. It is completely reasonable to ask your clinician to explain a term again or slow down if there is a lot to take in.

You do not need to remember everything in the room

Specific examples can be difficult to recall under pressure, particularly when you are also listening to new clinical information.

If you have prepared your child's Assessment Package through Threadline, much of your history, teacher input and supporting information may already be organised for your clinician to review.

You can still bring your own list of questions and add to it as new questions come up.