Sumana Kaipa, PsyD
Community SubscriberNeurosychological and Psycho-educational Testing for Children, Adolescents, & Young Adults
I specialize in providing comprehensive neuropsychological evaluations for school-aged children, adolescents, and young adults. I strive to help identify a child's learning style, emotions, and behaviors to help create a plan for success in the home and at school.
Common concerns I assess include:
- Developmental delays
- ADHD
- Learning challenges in reading, writing, or math
- Auditory or visual processing
- Processing speed
- Executive functioning (e.g. planning, organization, task initiation and completion, self-monitoring, time management)
- Social/emotional processing (e.g. ASD, depression, anxiety, behavioral problems)
- Recommendations for psychological or school interventions, accommodations, or school fit
Dr. Sumana is kind, intelligent, and comforting. She is an expert in dealing with neurodivergent kids and their parents. I feel like Dr. Sumana went the extra mile in getting to know our kid and really helping us and her school create a plan to support her continued growth in the best way possible. Sumana puts you at ease and made me feel as if I have a tribe supporting my family and me. I highly recommend Dr. Sumana!!
In March 2020, our grandson who was then in the 3rd grade was evaluated and qualified for special education services. Shortly thereafter, the covid pandemic closed the school and teaching resumed via zoom. Needless to say, for our grandson who has moderate to severe learning disabilities, a year and a half of distance learning was a disaster. However, before in-school resumed in August 2021, we were advised by a friend to have our son evaluated by Dr. Sumana Kaipa, a neuropsychologist. Dr. Kaipa's kind and engaging manner eased our anxieties about our grandson's situation by providing us with information as to how to proceed for the new school year. She also easily gained the trust of our grandson who enjoyed his evaluation sessions with her. The neuropsychological evaluation gave us a complete and comprehensive profile of our grandson's intellectual and learning challenges. More importantly, with Dr. Kaipa's diligent guidance, we were able to work with the necessary school personnel to revise our grandson's education plan (IEP) to enhance support and academic intervention. We recommend Dr. Kaipa's services to you wholeheartedly.
Mercedes Sanders
We were in contact with Dr. Kaipa through a referral by our son's school. I would whole heartly recommend Dr. Sumana Kaipa. Dr. Kaipa was thorough, patient and took her time to provide the best assessment for my son. We went for a reassessment, since he was first diagnosed with ADHD through Kaiser. We also had him do an academic assessment through the unified school district, but because he tested cognitively within normal range he did not qualify for an IEP. We moved him out of public school to private for more 1-1 attention and support. He did better, but we did notice some issues with pragmatic communication which we assumed was associated with his ADHD. Since it was recommended that he be reassessed we went to see Dr. Kaipa. After the initial battery of tests, Dr. Kaipa ran more tests and was able to assess that indeed he was on Spectrum. We appreciate her explanation and her very thorough recommendations. Her report outlines all testing mechanisms, her evaluation, diagnosis and several pages of academic and social recommendations/accommodations. She also provided a list of resources for us as parents to investigate to help us navigate his new diagnosis. My husband and I have a much better understanding of my son's social and academic learning needs, and how to find him the best support. We very much appreciate and recommend Dr. Kaipa!
I recommend Sumana Kaipa in Berkeley. She diagnosed my 8-year old last summer, also high-functioning but with similar issues. She has lots of recommendations on this site so I think people have universally appreciated her excellent work.
I would NOT recommend Sumana Kaipa, she completely misdiagnosed our child, and caused us much distress. She moved way too quickly in making a diagnosis that was completely wrong.
+1 for Dr. Kaipa. She assessed my 10 year old daughter (who sounds a lot like your daughter) last year and has helped us navigate the diagnosis and helped us advocate with her school. I'm happy to chat if you want someone to talk through this with - it was a difficult diagnosis to accept but has helped us understand our daughter immensely and is helping her understand herself better as well.
Dr. Sumana Kaipa, http://www.drkaipa.com/, in downtown Berkeley, did an evaluation of our 20-year-old daughter this fall focusing on ADHD. Our daughter sounds similar in some ways to yours, and ADHD was not on our radar until recently. Dr. Kaipa seemed very thorough: gathered records, talked to parents and did remote and in-person assessments of our daughter. She also was very responsive to the kind of evaluation my daughter wanted. My daughter liked her a lot, as did we parents, and her conclusions seemed spot-on. Good luck!
I haven't heard of PDA, but I highly recommend Sumana Kaipa in Berkeley, who diagnosed our 8-year-old daughter this past summer with HFA and ADHD. Dr. Kaipa was able to get us in almost immediately, saw my daughter in person despite the pandemic, observed her through eight hours of testing over three days, worked with us as parents through an intensive interview and a follow-up discussion after diagnosis, and produced a wonderful fifteen-or-so page report that helped us understand her HFA/ADHD, identified her giftedness (twice-exceptional, as they call it), and was heavily relied on by our district in the early fall in getting our IEP in place given that they were unwilling/unable to do traditional testing themselves. The one-on-one work with her new speech and special ed teachers at school has been a game-changer for behavior, even remotely. Dr. Kaipa does not take insurance but we found that what we paid has paid tremendous dividends through the IEP process.
This summer we were faced with the daunting task of finding a neuropsychologist for my 10 year old son to help diagnose some learning challenges. It seemed daunting to say the least. Dr. Kaipa was warm, approachable, and shared so much care and insight from our very first phonecall. She mapped a clear testing plan, gathered significant information and handled testing with warmth and kindness that helped my 10 year old feel comfortable.
Walking us through her findings was a revelation for my husband and I - they were incredibly helpful and insightful. Dr. Kaipa stepped us through each part, breaking down the meanings of each test and providing practical next steps. I learned so much through this process -- luckily - - which allowed me to quickly recognize my younger son's (7yo) learning issues and work with Dr. Kaipa AGAIN in the fall.
Again, she was insightful, thorough and supportive. Made testing easy for him, and provided great actionable steps to help support him in school. I was thrilled to be able to work with her with both kids over the past year. She is definitely a partner with such deep experience and insight that she applies practically.
Both of my kids have made big leaps in school with better support and accommodations. My husband and I also have a much richer understanding of how they approach learning. It has changed our parenting for the better.
Highly recommend and appreciate Dr. Kaipa!
Going to Dr. Kaipa was the best thing we have ever done for our daughter and our family. We were nervous, but Dr. Kaipa put us and our 16-year-old daughter at ease. Her comprehensive neuropsych assessment helped us to understand our daughter's strengths as well as the kinds of processing that tended to trip her up. Dr. Kaipa's thoughtful report allowed our daughter to get the support she needed at school and to tap into a network of resources. If I say the difference has been night and day, please know it has been more than that. Dr. Kaipa gave our daughter strength, self-knowledge and a hopefulness we had not thought possible.
Dr. Kaipa sparkles with warmth and intelligence. She is an engaged listener, an insightful professional and a powerful advocate. Our only regret is that we did not seek her help sooner.
Dr Sumana Kaipa was amazing. Not only did she complete a thorough battery of tests on our son she reached out to all of his therapists and school teachers to get the most accurate assessment. She first got to know my husband and I and listened to us and and our struggles then she sought out information from others. She then observed Grant in school over several days. She made sure the school was involved every step of the way. It was clear that she was not out to label our son but to gather as much information as she could to help us find ways to support him. Our assessment confirmed many of our concerns and she provided us feedback on how we could support him. She did not focus just on his weaknesses but also on his strengths. She will be helping us this school year set him up with the right kind of environment at his school to help him continue to grow. She referred us to therapists, and provided detailed explanations and examples on how we can best structure a model which will allow him to optimally learn in the way he learns. We left feeling hopeful, heard and most of all with more information and ways we can apply it. If you are looking for someone who is thorough, kind, gentle and thorough you cannot go wrong. I cannot thank her enough for helping us help our son.
Dr. Sumana Kaipa did a fantastic job performing a neuropsychological assessment of our nine year old daughter from start to finish. She’s knowledgeable, dependable and has impeccable people skills. She knows how to talk with parents, teachers and children. From the moment we spoke with her on the phone we knew she was the right choice for us. She talked us through the process, answered all our questions and set us all up for success. Her time spent with our daughter was incredibly productive and enlightening. We all now have a clear understanding of what we need to do to get our daughter where she needs to be. We strongly recommend Dr. Kaipa to anyone looking for neuropsychological help To quote our daughter, she’s, “helpful and cool”Dr. Sumana Kaipa did a fantastic job performing a neuropsychological assessment of our nine year old daughter from start to finish. She’s knowledgeable, dependable and has impeccable people skills. She knows how to talk with parents, teachers and children. From the moment we spoke with her on the phone we knew she was the right choice for us. She talked us through the process, answered all our questions and set us all up for success. Her time spent with our daughter was incredibly productive and enlightening. We all now have a clear understanding of what we need to do to get our daughter where she needs to be. We strongly recommend Dr. Kaipa to anyone looking for neuropsychological help To quote our daughter, she’s, “helpful and cool”.
Dr. Sumana Kaipa did a neuropsychological assessment of our teenage son. She has been an invaluable resource for him and us. Her evaluation of him was so professional, detailed and thorough. She is such a warm, caring person and took the time to get to know us and our son. She made several hours of testing painless for a very self aware teenage boy, and that is saying a lot! While she is incredibly knowledgable, she also has such a special way about her that made our son feel especially safe and comfortable. The knowledge that we now have about our son's learning differences will make a huge, positive impact on his life. Sumana Kaipa's assessment has validated him as a learner, and I have no doubt that he will be able to meet his academic potential with the recommendations that Dr. Kaipa has presented through her in-depth, professional evaluation. We highly recommend Dr. Sumana Kaipa.
Dr. Sumana Kaipa has been an invaluable resource for me as a parent of two kids with ADHD. Both kids are very bright but had focus and attentional issues in school such as trouble staying on top of assignments, test taking, organization, and planning ahead for long term projects and their grades started to suffer. I turned to Dr. Kaipa for help.The kids and I were able to understand their strengths and challenges with her thorough neuropsychological evaluation and insightful observations. This step was foremost in starting a dialogue with the educational specialists at the kids’ schools to set up a learning plan that would best support them academically. Having a documented learning difference has made a world of difference for my kids’ school experience and performance. My oldest is graduating from high school this year with honors and going on to the college of his choice. I highly recommend Dr. Sumana Kaipa for any parents or caregivers who are looking to get a neuropsychological evaluation for their kids.
Sumi did my son's neuropsych assessment a few years ago when we were just starting on our journey. She was and is warm, human, patient, and a good communicator. As for her report, professionals who have seen it always remark on its excellence. They say it is thorough, and that the testing tools she uses get to the heart of their questions and help guide their approach to my son's needs--which is the whole point of testing after all! Sumi was a great choice for us.
Archived Q&A and Reviews
May 2015
RE: Evaluation for 8th grader's learning disabilities
I can highly recommend Berkeley psychologist Sumana Kaipa, PsyD (510-689-1051). Dr. Kaipa
performed a neuropsychological evaluation of our 10-year-old daughter. The evaluation was thorough
and its findings instructive and very well written. Dr. Kaipa herself was a pleasure to work with,
even for our daughter, who initially was not at all happy to be subjected to any kind of
evaluation, let alone a neuropsychological one that took several hours to administer, but who in
the end reported that Dr. Kaipa was ''warm, funny, and very nice.'' I don't recall exactly what
the evaluation cost but it wasn't cheep. On the other hand, it was a very sound investment,
providing us with just the kind of information we needed (still need) to make informed decisions
about our daughter's education and well-being.
freais
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