Professionalism, empathy, experience. We see the Person and not the case of diagnosis.
We offer professional diagnosis for children, adolescents and adults:
⎫ We pay special attention to the reliability of the diagnoses we conduct and to the comfort of the patient and his family.
⎫ Our diagnosticians have more than 15 years of experience in ASD diagnosis and working with individuals on the autism spectrum.
⎫ We use recommended standardized diagnostic tools e.g. ASRS, ADOS-2
⎫ A team of experts will be there to assist: diagnostic psychologists and psychiatric physicians.
A diagnosis consists of several meetings including an interview with the child’s parents/guardians, a thorough analysis of the child’s past medical records, and observation of the child in interaction with the diagnostician and examination of the child using age- and needs-appropriate tests.
Autism spectrum disorders are a different, atypical pattern of development. Symptoms involve difficulties in three spheres: communication, social relationships and interests and, in the case of children, the way they play. The first symptoms are usually visible before the age of 3.
Currently, the autism spectrum is diagnosed worldwide without separating into autism, atypical autism or Asperger’s syndrome. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) refers to diversity in a person’s functioning in the realm of social communication and patterns of interest and interaction.
The comprehensive diagnostic process:
Autism spectrum disorders are complex and multifaceted in nature, so for a diagnosis to be reliable it should consist of several stages.
We conduct a comprehensive diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders for children, adolescents and adults based on current global standards.
The diagnostic process is conducted by an experienced psychologist-diagnostician and a psychiatrist. It always ends with the issuance of an opinion (also when the final diagnosis excludes ASD) and the issuance of a medical certificate if the diagnosis ends with the confirmation of ASD in the person.
During the diagnosis we use the ADOS-2 protocol, which is considered part of the „gold standard” of ASD diagnosis worldwide.
At our center, the ADOS-2 examination is conducted by certified ADOS-2 diagnosticians.
ADOS-2 is a semi-structured, standardized observation protocol used in diagnosing individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Screening with this tool consists of a series of trials to observe abnormalities characteristic of ASD in the areas of social communication, play, and restricted and repetitive behavior.
ADOS-2 is one of the most popular and highly regarded diagnostic tools for diagnosing autism spectrum disorders in the world.
At the same time, it is very important to remember that the ADOS-2 protocol is an auxiliary tool in the process of diagnosis, and conducting the ADOS-2 test is not sufficient to issue a diagnosis.
The course of the diagnosis process recommended by WOPP:
1. diagnostic interview: a meeting WITHOUT the child
At the first meeting, the diagnostic psychologist or psychiatrist collects information on the child’s developmental course and functioning. Based on the collected information, he selects the best course of further diagnosis. During the meeting, the ASRS questionnaire may be used.
Please bring:
– photocopy of the medical, psychological, pedagogical documentation in your possession
– photocopy of the child’s health book or discharge from the hospital after the birth of the child
– photocopy of any opinions you have on the functioning of the child in the peer group (from kindergarten/school)
2nd and 3rd Observation of the psychologist-diagnostician: a visit with the CHILD
Meeting 2 (i.e., the first meeting with the child) is aimed at free observation of the child’s functioning, establishing communication with the child (assessing the level of speech development, which is necessary for the ADOS 2 test), examining the child’s skills in theory of mind, differentiation of emotions, establishing interaction by the child. The meeting is in the nature of joint play and conversation.
Meeting 3 (that is, the second meeting with the child) is based on the use of the ADOS-2 protocol and an assessment of how representative the child’s behavior was during the first meeting.
4 Providing feedback – a MEETING WITHOUT CHILD.
Meeting with the child’s parents. The presence of both parents is recommended. The diagnostic psychologist discusses the child’s strengths and noted difficulties, provides a comprehensive opinion including a report on the ADOS examination.
5 Observation and consultation of a child psychiatrist – MEETING WITH THE CHILD
The doctor conducts an interview with the parents and an examination of the child, analyzes the findings collected so far and the opinion of the psychologist-diagnostician.
If the test results and the doctor’s observations are consistent – a medical certificate is issued.
The doctor may suggest other tests (neurological, morphological, tests for ADHD, etc.).
Sometimes you may have to visit to a child psychiatrist first, and during the visit the doctor will suggest a consultation with a child psychologist and an examination with the ADOS-2 protocol. Then the path of diagnosis will differ slightly (depending on the doctor’s recommendation). The doctor will inform you about the next steps of diagnosis.
*The ADOS protocol examination:
Doing the ADOS-2 study alone is possible if your child was consulted at another center and you got a recommendation to do the ADOS-2 study and return to your home center.
Please note that the ADOS-2 examination alone is not sufficient to make a reliable diagnosis. It is an important auxiliary tool for a comprehensive diagnosis.
If you have been referred by specialists from another institution then we invite you to a series of three meetings: