Case Study
Patient Demographic: Client Age: 25 Sex: Male Gender: Male Sexuality: Bisexual Ethnicity: Caucasian Relationship Status: Single Counseling Setting: Telehealth Type of Counseling: Individual counseling Presenting Problem: The client is experiencing difficulty focusing on work due to a childhood diagnosis of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and thinks that if he cannot keep up with work, he is going to get fired. Diagnosis: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), predominantly inattentive presentation (F90.0)
Mental Status Exam: Mental Status Exam: The client is oriented to person, place, time and situation. The client is engaged and participates fully in the intake session. The client does not appear anxious. The client has a flat af
Presenting Problem: You are a licensed counselor working in your own private practice and providing telehealth sessions to clients. The client states that he is having trouble keeping up with tasks at work. The client reports that he wakes up and does not want to go to work because he knows he will not get much done. The client is often late to work, and although he is typically the only one in the office, his employer comes to work every now and then, and he worries that he will get caught arriving late. He says that he procrastinates on tasks but, often near the end of the day, finds motivation to complete the tasks and stays late to do so. In addition to his trouble at work, the client says he thinks that he does not do much that makes him happy. He expresses the desire to write stories and play guitar more because these activities used to make him happy, but he has trouble finding motivation to engage in them at the present.
Other Contexts:    fect. Family History: The client reports a strained relationship with his parents, but he says that he does not want to talk about them because they are not the reason that he is in therapy. The client says that he has a younger sister (age 23) and that they are not close. The client reports that he currently has a girlfriend

Question: Which of the following assessments would be the most effective in evaluating ADHD for this client?
(A): An organizational assessment
(B): Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales
(C): Vanderbilt ADHD Diagnostic Rating Scale
(D): Conners Abbreviated Symptom Questionnaire

Correct Answer: Conners Abbreviated Symptom Questionnaire
Explanation: According to a meta-analysis of ADHD questionnaires and assessment tools performed in 2016, the Conners Abbreviated Symptom Questionnaire is the most effective tool for screening for ADHD due to its ability to assess for positive and negative symptoms. This tool will be the most helpful because it probes functioning in many areas including work, home, school, and social functioning with ADHD. The Vanderbilt ADHD Diagnostic Rating Scale would not be appropriate for this patient because it assesses ages 6 through 12 for ADHD. The Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales would also be inappropriate for this client because it is used for people ages 3 through 21. Although an organizational assessment may be helpful, it is not an approved means of diagnosing ADHD. Therefore, the correct answer is (D)
Competency: intake, assessment, and diagnosis