What is a "functional assessment"?

What is a "functional assessment"?

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A functional assessment would be examining how a person is able to function in the important domains of life, and that would be primarily in the social situation or in the work situation. Socially, you'd want to be inquiring about significant relationships; do they have a significant other? What's the status or quality of that relationship? What kind of social network do they have, what kind of support? When evaluating job function, we're interested in what the highest level of job is that they've been able to attain; what's their work history? Do they stay in one job, or are there frequent changes that might be a consequence of mental illness? Another functional assessment for more severely ill individuals might be actually examining how they're able to make certain kinds of decisions that are important in everyday life. For example, can they figure out a bus route, or can they make simple financial calculations? This can be very important in making decisions about, for example, where a person might best reside when leaving the hospital.