ABSTRACT
This chapter outlines an approach to mental health assessment within the wider context of the family, professional and social networks. This form of systemically oriented assessment is viewed as a holistic approach that enables the emergence of rich information within the assessment process, facilitating relevant treatment planning. Assessment and intervention are viewed as both independent and interconnected endeavours: information gained from assessment guides intervention, whereas new information emerges in the intervention phase, which enriches hypotheses expressed in the initial assessment.
