Healthy Brain Network

The Child Mind Institute is the leading independent nonprofit in children’s mental health providing gold-standard, evidence-based care, delivering educational resources to millions of families each year, training educators in underserved communities, and developing open science initiatives and tomorrow’s breakthrough treatments.

The Healthy Brain Network is a community-based research initiative of the Child Mind Institute providing no-cost mental health and learning evaluations to eligible children and adolescents. By collecting neuroimaging, phenotypic, and clinical data from thousands of young people, we are building the largest-ever dataset of the developing brain — and sharing this de-identified data with the global scientific community to improve diagnosis and treatment from an objective biological perspective.

Children ages 5 to 21 and their parent or legal guardian. Participation requires visits to one of our locations in New York City — so families within the New York City metropolitan area, tri-state area around New York City, or within several hours drive are the best fit for the program. However, all families are welcome, and we have worked with many families from other states.

Along with their legal guardian, each participant will have four to five evaluation appointments. Some components may be completed via video conference, while others require a visit to one of our evaluation centers. We have two locations in the NYC area, Harlem and Staten Island. Both are accessible via public transportation.

This study consists of an evaluation of your child’s physical and mental health, as well as academic testing. You will complete an initial screening questionnaire to rule out anything that might disqualify your child from participating. After your child has been cleared to participate, we will schedule an appointment for your child to take vital measurements, and complete questionnaires about emotions and behaviors, a computerized neuropsychological test, an IQ and achievement test, and an EEG recording session.

About each evaluation:

• Structured psychological interview
  A clinician will conduct face-to-face interviews with both the participant and the accompanying parent or caregiver, asking detailed questions about the participant’s past experiences and mental health history. The results of these interviews will help determine whether the participant may qualify for a diagnosis of a psychological disorder or benefit from further evaluation and treatment.
• Brief neurocognitive testing
  The participant will complete a series of computerized tests to evaluate their cognitive abilities and functioning in several areas, including attention, working memory, speed of mental processing, language, visual perception, memory, motor speed and dexterity, and executive functions (such as planning, organizing, and abstract reasoning).
• Intelligence and achievement testing
  Intelligence tests assess verbal and nonverbal knowledge and problem-solving abilities. Achievement tests measure the extent to which the participant has acquired information or mastered certain academic skills, such as math, reading, and spelling. The results of these tests will help determine whether the participant may qualify for a diagnosis of a learning disorder or may benefit from further evaluation
• Questionnaires on feelings, thoughts, and behaviors
  The participant and accompanying parent or caregiver will complete several questionnaires about the participant’s emotions and behaviors, related to both social experiences and academics. Responses will provide a fuller picture of the participant’s overall functioning and quality of life.
• Fitness and physical health testing (not done in Staten Island)
  The participant will be asked to perform some tasks that are for research purposes only. These tasks include but are not limited to taking a test for color blindness and a collection of vital signs
• Brain activity (EEG) (not done in Staten Island)
  Participants will undergo an EEG recording session to collect information on their brain activity. All data collected during this session will be used for research purposes and will not be included in the feedback report. This data helps our researchers learn more about how the developing brain works Brain imaging via MRI was collected from Healthy Brain Network participants in the early years of the study

At least one parent or caregiver is expected to attend each visit with the participating child. This parent will be an active participant in the evaluation process via questionnaires and interviews throughout the duration of the study. The parent will be asked to provide informed consent for their child to participate. They will complete some questionnaires about family health history and their child, provide information about their child’s behaviors, and complete a diagnostic interview with a clinician. In addition to three to four appointments for the child, there will be two parent-only visits.

Like a neuropsych evaluation, our assessment provides valuable information about your child’s thinking and learning strengths, weaknesses, and needs. However, there are a few key differences:

• The Healthy Brain Network uses a fixed series of tests for research purposes. Traditional neuropsych evaluations may use a more flexible approach where the clinician selects tests tailored to a child’s specific concerns.
• Our evaluation may not include as many tests for attention and executive functioning as a traditional neuropsych evaluation.
• In some cases of a specific learning disorder in reading (i.e., dyslexia) or writing (i.e., dysgraphia), additional testing may be required to confirm a diagnosis.

During our evaluation, children are asked to complete some tasks that are solely for research purposes, not diagnosis. It is important to note that families are expected to complete all tasks in order to receive their child’s report.

Families receive a report detailing their child’s results. The report may be used to inform potential treatment and classroom instruction (504 plan/IEP). In addition to the report, families also receive compensation for completion of certain tasks (up to $125).

About a month after completing the evaluation, you will receive your child’s detailed feedback report and the option to attend a feedback visit with the clinician to discuss the results. The report will include the results of your child’s evaluation and provide advice and treatment recommendations, if applicable. You will also receive recommendations for additional treatment or services in your community if necessary.

All personal health information, including all test results, are kept completely confidential and will be securely stored. All information collected during the study will be separated from participants’ identifying information such as name, birth date, and address. Data that are shared with research scientists are anonymous — none of your child’s identifying information will be included.

If you would like your family to participate in the program, the first step is to complete an online eligibility form to make sure the study and evaluation are a good fit for your child. The online form will take you about 15 minutes to complete. You should complete one form for each child you would like to have evaluated.

If you know a child who struggles with behavior, anxiety, academics, or bullying, they may benefit from a mental health and learning evaluation. Connect families with a no-cost evaluation using our refer a participant form.