Why Psychiatrists Use Standardized Assessments to Track ProgressWhy We Use Standardized Assessments to Track Progress

How do you know if you’re getting better? When you’re in the middle of a mental health journey, it can sometimes be hard to tell. Some days are good, and some are bad. Your feelings can be subjective and change from one moment to the next. So how can you and your provider get an objective look at how your treatment is working? This is where standardized assessments come in.

At Televero Health, we use these assessments as a regular part of your care. You might see them as just another form to fill out, but they are actually a vital tool. They provide a consistent, data-driven way for us to track your symptoms and measure your progress over time, ensuring that your treatment plan is as effective as possible.

What Are Standardized Assessments?

Standardized assessments are carefully designed questionnaires that ask about your symptoms in a structured way. You’ve probably already filled one out. Common examples include the PHQ-9 for depression or the GAD-7 for anxiety. These are not tests that you can pass or fail. They are simply a snapshot of how you have been feeling over a specific period, usually the last two weeks.

The questions are “standardized,” which means they are the same for everyone, every time. You rate the severity of each symptom on a numerical scale. For example, “Over the last two weeks, how often have you been bothered by feeling nervous, anxious, or on edge?” You might answer on a scale from 0 (not at all) to 3 (nearly every day).

Your answers are then added up to create a total score. This score gives a numerical representation of the severity of your symptoms. A higher score indicates more severe symptoms, while a lower score indicates milder symptoms.

Why Are They So Important?

Using these assessments provides several key benefits for your care:

  1. They Create a Baseline: Your score on your first assessment creates a baseline. It’s a starting point that shows the severity of your symptoms before treatment begins. This gives us a clear picture of what we are working with.
  2. They Track Progress Objectively: Your feelings are important, but they can be unreliable for tracking change. You might have a bad day and feel like nothing is working, even if your symptoms have actually improved overall. The scores on these assessments provide objective data. If your score on the PHQ-9 goes from 18 to 10 over a few months, we have clear evidence that the treatment is having a positive effect, even if you still have tough days.
  3. They Guide Treatment Decisions: The data from these assessments helps your provider make informed decisions about your care. If your scores are not improving after a reasonable amount of time, it’s a clear signal that the current treatment plan may not be the right fit. It tells us that we need to have a conversation about adjusting your medication, trying a different type of therapy, or exploring other factors that might be getting in the way of your recovery.
  4. They Empower You: Seeing your scores improve over time can be incredibly validating and motivating. It’s concrete proof that your hard work is paying off. It can also help you to communicate more effectively with your provider. You can point to specific areas on the assessment where you are still struggling, which can help to focus your conversation.

This practice, often called Measurement-Based Care, is considered a gold standard in modern psychiatry. It ensures that your treatment is not based on guesswork, but on real data about your personal experience. It’s a collaborative process that keeps you and your provider on the same page, working together toward the shared goal of your recovery.

Key Takeaways

  • Standardized assessments (like the PHQ-9 or GAD-7) are questionnaires used to track your symptoms in a consistent, measurable way.
  • They provide an objective score that represents the severity of your symptoms, creating a baseline and allowing you and your provider to track progress over time.
  • The data from these assessments helps guide treatment decisions, showing when a plan is working and when it may need to be adjusted.
  • This practice, called Measurement-Based Care, empowers you and ensures your treatment is guided by data, not guesswork.

Ready to take the first step? We can help. Get started with Televero Health today.