Book excerpt: This book offers students and trainees a thorough guide to clinical assessment. It covers different types of clinical assessment and explores the implications of the alternative views on clients′ needs and treatment. It explores clinical assessment as an ′art and science′ and brings the reader up to date with new requirements placed on therapists in both organisational and clinical practice based settings. In addition to outlining models for clinical assessment, it looks at the use of evidence-based practice in assessments. There are sections on doing assessments within organisations as well as from private practice.