Due to bad weather and difficulty with roads (especially for those living away from Cork City), many people find it hard to make it to their appointments on time.
We operate as usual, therefore if your ability to get to your appointment is compromised due to bad weather, please ring us as early as possible on 021-4936006 to reschedule your appointment.
Timely notification will allow you to avoid the late cancellation fees and will allow your therapist to make alternative arrangements.
We are continuing our series of articles with the newest addition, which explains what a psychological assessment process is all about. Debbie Hegarty is once again contributing to the series and sharing the results of her research on psychological testing and it’s wide range of uses and applications.
If you are interested in either domestic or intercountry adoption, you are probably already familiar with our article on Inter-Country Adoption. However, even if the country you are aiming to adopt from does not require the MMPI test, a universally-acknowledged psychological assessment carried out by a certified clinical psychologist will reflect well on any applicant.
Aiming to help explain what psychological assessments are for, and how MMPI-2-RF in particular is the most widely used and recognized personality assessment test, Debbie Hegarty has put together and article which covers all these questions in detail.
One particular group of psychological tests, known as personality tests, strive to uncover the structure of the personality to include a person’s thinking, feeling and behaviour. Other groups of tests are designed to measure signs and symptoms of psychopathology and psychiatric disorders. Tests of psychopathology and personality are further subdivided into two groups: objective and projective. Objective tests include standardized, clear, specific items and questions that are presented to the respondent as well as limited response options (e.g., answering “yes” or “no” to a particular question). Projective tests include asking open ended and ambiguous stimuli and include stories from respondents (Hersen, 2003).
We at the Hazelton clinic are delighted to announce that we are now providing assessments for prospective clients using The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory 2 Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF). This personality testing kit which has been described as “The Gold-Star of all assessment tools” (Irish Medical Times, 2010) is utilized to assist in identifying personality structure and psychopathology. Psychopathological disorder can be as general as depression, anxiety and panic attacks or as complex as OCD, bipolar, schizophrenia and personality disorder.
Thanks to long and arduous research by our Debbie Hegarty, we can now offer our readers a comprehensive article about all aspects of intercountry adoption.
The article explains the adoption process in great detail. It provides a detail explanation of the intercountry adoption and it’s specifics for Irish citizens willing to adopt from abroad, as well as detailed list of steps which must be undertaken by anyone who decides to adopt.
The second part of the article focuses on the role of the Hazelton Clinic in facilitating this process for adoptive parents, the information about the obligatory psychological testing, as well as ongoing support for both parents and adopted children after the adoption.
The Hazelton Clinic provides assessments for prospective clients using The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI). This personality testing kit which has been described as “The Gold-Star of all assessment tools” (Irish Medical Times, 2010) is utilized to assess, identify and diagnose disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder, clinical depression and schizophrenia.
The use of the test, over the years, has been greatly expanded. It is now applied as a screening instrument for high-risk public safety positions such as nuclear power plant workers, police officers, airline pilots, medical and psychology students, firefighters and seminary students. In addition it is used to evaluate the effectiveness of treatment programs, including substance abuse programs.
We at the Hazelton Clinic acquired the test with a view to enabling prospective adoptive couples in their adoption process. It had come to our attention that whilst countries such as Vietnam have shut their doors to inter-country adoption other countries had opened theirs. Most notable are the Philippines. However, they have added a stipulation that the couples obtain the above-named assessment before they qualify for consideration as adoptive parents. This stipulation was introduced into inter-country adoption policy in November 2009. It came to the attention of The Irish Adoption Board on the 10th February 2010.
A licensed clinical psychologist is the only mental health professional who can carry out the test. We have two Resident Clinical Psychologists on our panel of professional practitioners and both are fully trained in the use of the MMPI.
For more information or to make your appointment, please contact our office on 021-4936006.
Due to a very high volume of enquiries from parents and schools, we have added a new page about the type of services that our clinical psychologists provide for children.
We are proud to present a new article by Debbie Hegarty.
Self-esteem is closely associated with our identity. Our identity is developed within the dynamics of group. A group can consist of any number of participants or members and can be as small as two people (a dyad) or three people (a triad). The first significant group an individual will belong to is the family system. All family systems have sub-systemic groups that influence the development of the individuals sense of ‘self’.
Pleased to meet you, and we hope you are pleased to meet us!
We have updated our website to include the pictures and experience descriptions of most of our staff members. We are still working on this page, so please bear with us while we have everybody’s profiles accessible to you.
Breakdown of communication in a relationship is the key problem which inhibits any solutions to all the other problems or issues a couple may experience. Resentment, guilt, suppressed anger and tendency to blame either oneself or one’s partner – all those things arise when we feel we are not expressing ourselves or when our feelings are not known or acknowledged by the other half.
While issues of any relationship can only be solved by ongoing commitment and dedication from both partners, there are still certain things to be aware of. Often we involuntarily contribute to the break-down in communication, even when what we are trying to do is to find a solution to a problem.
If you are interested to find out more about the possible ways to express yourself better, or at least to keep the communication more open on your part, you may be interesting these Top Tips provided by the Marriage & Relationship Counselling Services website.
• Respond to the other person’s feelings in what they are trying to say. In arguments people often dwell on facts rather than feelings. Don’t interrupt and not listen to your partner.
• Keep to the issue in hand – don’t change the topic / drag up previous disagreements or bring in other people’s opinions to back you up.
• Don’t make generalizing complaints: you always – you never… Replace blame / criticism with wishes e.g. ‘You never do the ironing’ to ‘I wish you would share the ironing’
• If you’re angry about something, recognise and admit it. Identify its source e.g. have you brought anger home from work and taken it out on your partner? Understand why you are angry – differentiate between what is reasonable and what is not – don’t assume the person affecting your anger is doing it on purpose.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder is a condition that may put your life through a lot of stress unless you recognize that you are suffering from it and seek help.
Generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) is characterised by an uncontrollable and unrealistic worry about everyday situations such as school, work, relationships or health. This worrying has to occur on the majority of days for at least six months for a diagnosis of GAD.
This worry is uncontrollable and can be accompanied by at least three additional symptoms which include:
- feeling restless
- getting tired easily
- difficulty concentrating
- feeling cranky
- tense muscles
- disturbed sleep.
GAD may affect parts of your life and you might find you’re not able to enjoy the things you normally would. It is possible that you might also feel more likely to misuse alcohol and drugs as a way to escape or numb overwhelming feelings.
Click here to read the article on the REACH OUT website.
[REACH OUT have an excellent website, filled with very interesting and relevant articles, mostly concerning the challenges and concerns faced by young adults today.]
www.helpguide.org has an excellent article about depression symptoms and causes, as well as ways of treatment and receiving help.
If you identify with several of the following signs and symptoms, and they just won’t go away, you may be suffering from clinical depression.
- you can’t sleep or you sleep too much
- you can’t concentrate or find that previously easy tasks are now difficult
- you feel hopeless and helpless
- you can’t control your negative thoughts, no matter how much you try
- you have lost your appetite or you can’t stop eating
- you are much more irritable and short-tempered than usual
- you have thoughts that life is not worth living (Seek help immediately if this is the case)
Please read the full article here.