About
Dr Rachael McCarthy
Doctorate in Clinic Psychology (DclinPsy), MSc in Health Psychology, BSc Psychology, HCPC member

Professional qualifications, accreditations and memberships
I have a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology (DclinPsy)
MSc in Health Psychology
BSc Psychology
Registered with Heath Care Professions Council (HCPC)
My professional experience
I am a Clinical Psychologist with many years’ experience working in the NHS predominantly in multi-disciplinary neurodevelopmental services. I specialise in assessments for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Intellectual Disability. I am trained to use gold standard diagnostic tools including the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) and Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) to assess ASD and the Wechsler scales (WISC-V and WIAT-III) for assessing cognitive abilities. I also provide psycho-educational and psychological support to children and families around further understanding the diagnosis.
I am able to provide support to children (with and without neurodevelopmental conditions), who have challenging behaviours, sleep/toileting/feeding difficulties, emotional difficulties (anxiety, low self-esteem, depression), social interaction challenges, and I also provide consultation to schools. I am also a trained facilitator of a evidence-based social skills training programme called PEERS for teens with ASD/social communication difficulties and I can deliver this individually or as part of a group.
The consultations and therapy I provide are all carried out using a safe virtual platform. I am flexible in my approach to working with families and can provide short, focussed pieces of work or longer more involved interventions.
I am trained in a number of therapies including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, which I am able to adapt for people with social communication and learning difficulties. I also use behavioural approaches, particularly for younger children, and adopt a systemic way of working with families. I am able to work with parents or children, or a combination of both.