Avaliação psicológica no contexto da saúde mental: desafios para além da clínica

The present study aims to problematize the processes of psychological evaluations, allowing a critical reflection on the theme. It sought to describe the processes of psychological evaluation performed in a Psychosocial Care Center and to understand its insertion in the context of mental health. This is an experience report, with a qualitative, descriptive approach, on the psychological evaluation processes, performed as a resident psychologist, in a one-year period, in a CAPS type I, located in the southern region of Brazil. It was identified that, in this context, the psychologist is linked to a social representation associated with the individual clinic, influencing the high number of referrals for evaluation and making it difficult to develop an expanded clinic. It was observed that, in spite of the challenges, the psychologist possesses instruments to carry out an evaluation that enhances the integral care and the biopsychosocial view, as well as, the relevance of the clinical interview as a method for psychological evaluation in the substitutive service was verified. It is considered that, in order to fulfill its social responsibility, psychological evaluation should be used as a facilitating tool in understanding psychic suffering and identifying the potentialities of each subject, always taking into account their context.