Carolina Hall, RPsych Registered Psychologist | Independent Clinician, Breakthrough ADHD Center

I didn't arrive at this work through a textbook. I started as a Behavioural Therapist, working directly alongside BCBA-certified analysts with children on the Autism Spectrum, hands-on, in the room, watching how these children moved through the world. That foundation never left me.

Over more than 20 years, I've worked across British Columbia and Alberta, in schools, in children's mental health clinics with Alberta Health Services, and in private practice. What has stayed consistent is the population I keep returning to: children whose profiles are complex, whose needs don't fit neatly into a single diagnosis, and whose families have often spent years looking for someone who can see the whole picture.

My work at Breakthrough ADHD Center is focused on psychological assessment for children and adolescents with ADHD, ASD, learning disabilities, and gifted profiles, including twice-exceptional children.

Gifted children with ADHD are among the most frequently misread profiles I encounter. Their intellectual strengths compensate for, and conceal, the real difficulties underneath. They get described as unmotivated, scattered, or underachieving. What's actually happening is a brain that is simultaneously exceptional and genuinely struggling, in ways a standard assessment often won't catch. These children need an assessor who understands both sides of that picture and knows how to look for what the scores alone won't show.

My approach to assessment goes beyond test scores. Having spent years observing behaviour directly and collaborating with schools, physicians, psychiatrists, and allied health professionals across two provinces, I bring a broad clinical lens to understanding what is actually happening for a child, and why. Families leave with a clear picture of their child's profile and practical recommendations they can use.

At Breakthrough, my assessments connect directly to a multidisciplinary team, which means the findings don't sit in a report on a shelf. They become part of a coordinated plan.

Credentials

• Carolina Hall, Registered Psychologist (AB 5032 & CHCPBC 1015280)
• Certified Play Therapy Supervisor (CPTS-AB/BC-1354)