Brain Sprout Clinic Assessments
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Assessment
Understanding Neurodevelopment, Strengths and Support Needs
Comprehensive Neurodevelopmental Assessment
Multidisciplinary Approach
Sensitive and Well Informed
Assessments for children aged 6+, adolescents, and adults.
Understanding the whole neurodevelopmental profile
Practical Reports and meaningful next steps.
Understanding the Assessment
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is a lifelong neurodevelopmental condition associated with alcohol exposure before birth. It can influence areas such as thinking, learning, memory, attention, communication, emotional regulation and everyday functioning.
There is no single presentation of FASD. Two people with FASD may have very different profiles of strengths, difficulties and support needs.
At Brain Sprout Clinic, FASD assessment brings together information about prenatal alcohol exposure, development, health, neurodevelopmental functioning and everyday life to develop a comprehensive understanding of the individual.
Our approach is sensitive and non-judgemental. Discussions about prenatal alcohol exposure are focused on gathering the information needed for assessment and are approached with care.
People may seek an assessment when there is known or suspected prenatal alcohol exposure alongside questions about development, learning, behaviour or everyday functioning.
An assessment may explore areas such as:
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thinking and reasoning
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attention and executive functioning
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learning and academic skills
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memory
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communication and language
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motor skills
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emotional and behavioural regulation
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social functioning
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adaptive and everyday living skills
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individual strengths and support needs.
FASD can also occur alongside other neurodevelopmental, learning and mental health conditions. A comprehensive assessment considers the overall pattern rather than assuming that every difficulty is explained by FASD.
FASD assessment is broader than completing one cognitive or psychological test. It involves assessing a range of areas of neurodevelopment and bringing these findings together with the person's developmental, medical and everyday history.
Depending on the individual, the assessment may include:
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comprehensive developmental and clinical interviews
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assessment of cognitive abilities
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attention and executive functioning
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memory and learning
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academic skills
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communication
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emotional and behavioural regulation
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adaptive and everyday functioning
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information from parents, caregivers, teachers or other people who know the person well
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review of previous medical, educational and assessment records
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consideration of prenatal alcohol exposure
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multidisciplinary consultation where appropriate
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feedback
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a comprehensive written report.
The exact assessment is tailored to the individual. Not everyone needs the same combination of assessment tools.
FASD assessment looks across multiple areas of brain development and functioning rather than relying on a single IQ score or questionnaire.
Depending on the person and the questions being explored, assessment may consider intellectual abilities, communication, memory, attention, executive functioning, academic skills, motor skills, emotional and behavioural regulation, social functioning and adaptive functioning.
Different assessment tools may be selected to explore these areas based on the person's age, abilities and existing information.
Brain Sprout Clinic's multidisciplinary team includes psychology, speech pathology and social work. Depending on the individual assessment, different clinicians may contribute to understanding areas such as cognition, learning, communication, development, behaviour, relationships, everyday functioning and the person's broader social context.
We may also consider information from existing medical and allied health professionals rather than repeating assessments unnecessarily.
The aim is to bring these perspectives together into one meaningful understanding of the person, rather than viewing each area in isolation.
Information about alcohol exposure during pregnancy forms an important part of FASD assessment.
We understand that conversations about prenatal alcohol exposure can feel sensitive and may involve incomplete information, particularly for people in foster, kinship or other care arrangements, or adults seeking assessment many years later.
Our approach is respectful, sensitive and non-judgemental. The purpose of asking about prenatal alcohol exposure is to gather clinically relevant information and understand the circumstances as accurately as possible.
Where information is available, this may come from the birth parent, family members, medical or child protection records, or other reliable sources.
Under the Australian diagnostic framework, prenatal alcohol exposure is an important part of diagnostic reasoning, although there are specific circumstances involving the characteristic sentinel facial features where FASD may be considered when exposure cannot be confirmed.
The Assessment Process
Understanding the Person Behind the Results
A FASD assessment may involve several different types of activities depending on the areas being explored. This might look like conversation, puzzles, working with pictures, remembering information, reading or maths activities, questionnaires and talking about everyday experiences.
We recognise that lengthy assessments, unfamiliar tasks and repeated questions can be demanding. Appointments can be structured with breaks, movement and adjustments to support comfortable participation.
For children, information from caregivers, teachers and other important adults helps us understand how they function across different environments. For adults, we work with the developmental information and records that are reasonably available.
There is no expectation to perform perfectly. Some activities are deliberately challenging because understanding where things become difficult, as well as where strengths lie, helps us build an accurate neurodevelopmental profile.
Ready to take the next step?
Questions about FASD can be complex, particularly when developmental history or information about prenatal alcohol exposure is incomplete. Our team can discuss the information currently available, the areas that may need to be assessed and whether a FASD assessment is an appropriate next step.