Welcome to Brain Health Neuropsychology! My name is Dr. Christine Ghilain and I am a board certified clinical neuropsychologist in private practice. I wanted toy introduce myself, and to walk through some of the key pages on my website where you can find information about the clients I serve and the services I provide.
A Review of the Website
To begin, the home page welcomes you to the site, and points out those unique qualifications that separate me from other neuropsychologists who might have popped up on your google search. To that end, clicking on Meet Dr. Ghilain gives you more information about my education and qualifications as a neuropsychologist, some of the most common neurological or developmental conditions I see in my practice, as well as a selection of recent talks and presentations I gave at national and international conferences. I include this information so that you can feel confident that I attained the appropriate training and have the skills necessary to serve you or your family’s needs. I’ll touch on conscious consumerism in a future blog! Unfortunately, there are some individuals who call themselves neuropsychologists who have not met even the minimum standards of competence in the field. Thus, I am happy to be transparent about my background and training.
So what is neuropsychology all about? Some of the first questions I answer when clients call to schedule with me include: (1) what exactly is a neuropsychological evaluation, and (2) why would someone need to seek out a neuropsychologist for an evaluation? Therefore, I included pages on the site discussing those two very common questions! I include other common questions that arise when individuals call to learn more about the process, and I am always glad to talk through additional concerns of family members. Future blog posts will address these two main questions, but for now, clicking the links to learn answers to those questions.
I see individuals for evaluations across two broad categories: clinical and forensic. Clinical evaluations are for individuals who notice changes to their thinking, learning or productivity, or for those who struggle at school or work. For infants, this may be due to an early stroke in utero or delayed developmental milestones. For preschool-aged children, this evaluation can provide an understanding of whether the child is ready for kindergarten, or if they need to be set up with a school support as they enter elementary school. Across late childhood and teenage years, I see clients whose parents are concerned for attention difficulties, disorganization, sadness, worrying, or learning challenges (amongst many other things!).
In adulthood, I see individuals who may have struggled their whole life with difficulties socializing or maintaining consistent employment. Others may have suffered a stroke or brain injury, and want to understand how their injury may impact their functioning as they age. Finally, in older adulthood, clients see me with concerns for dementia, changes to their mood, or difficulties at work. A family member can also bring them due to personality changes, for example. Often, an individual who is diagnosed with a neurological or developmental condition comes to me to understand how they can maximize their success in the context of their diagnosis. My goal is to empower clients to use their areas of strength to bolster areas of weakness. My clients leave with a roadmap for exactly how to do just that!
On the forensic side, I see clients who have known or suspected brain injury or insult as a result of an accident or incident. They may be seeking financial compensation, or they may be referred by their insurance company in order to determine their eligibility for disability benefits. Finally, I am often retained by school districts to complete Independent Educational Evaluations. These evaluations support schools in providing the best services for their students.
In the final pages of this site, I answer frequently asked questions, blog about new topics of interest, and provide a method for interested individuals to contact me for consultation. I look forward to providing more information in the weeks, months and years ahead!