I just started working as an outpatient psychometrist for a major hospital group, with the intention of applying for clinical psych programs (with a neuropsych concentration) this or next cycle.

I come from a more biomed intensive educational background, but wanted to pursue this route because unlike medicine, I like the option of being able to spend more time evaluating patients, and being more rehabilitation/behavior/lifestyle focused in my recommendations as opposed to just doling out meds lol. In working/observing this field I have grown conflicted by a few observations, and wanted to get some perspective. TIA!

1) norms are centered around white, english speaking patients. there isn’t a lot of funding for changing this, and it’s a time intensive process. thus, there is a lag in developing new tests and making neuropsych testing more inclusive across racial/ethnic group and language differences. am i correct in these observations, and what are some things neuropsychologists/researchers are doing to change this limitation in the field?

2) neurology incorporates more imaging into their evaluations, like MRI, PET, fMRI, EEG etc. I understand that neuropsych neuroimaging results don’t always align, like someone with a relatively normal scan can still show cognitive deficits and vice versa. As the technology improves, do you think that imaging will get better at predicting and localizing functional changes, thus rendering neuropsych testing for these cases obsolete? If not, how can testing play a role in helping these patients?

3) What are some neuropsych career tracks/settings that would involve patients more of a medical presentation? Id love to hear anecdotes if you have any 😊