Assessments for Families (452.4 KiB)
Introduction to the Table of Assessments for Families
In our work with families and service users we know that it is important to make sure that we are doing the best we can with the resources available to us and evaluation is an essential part of this. At Meriden we are often asked about which assessment tools to use. The answer often depends on the context in which the assessment is to be used, as different tools provide information on different aspects of families’ experiences. We do not, consequently, endorse or recommend any particular tool but are always happy to discuss the options available.
Our colleague, Eleanor Baggott, who works for the Early Intervention service in Forward Thinking Birmingham, has produced a very useful table of assessments. The table has been constructed from the perspective of First Episode Psychosis but provides a useful overview of the tools available. As Eleanor says in her introduction to the table, a number of tools use language which we and many of our carer and service user colleagues find problematic, such as “burden” or “expressed emotion”. Like Eleanor, we do not endorse the use of these terms but accept that they remain part of the language of the assessments which help services ensure that they are doing the best they can for families.