Rio Grande Valley · Telehealth
ADHD Evaluation in the Rio Grande Valley
A psychiatrist-led ADHD evaluation for McAllen, Brownsville, Edinburg, Harlingen and the rest of the Valley — bilingual, and from a practice on the same river.
In short: DaniCare Psychiatry provides psychiatrist-led ADHD evaluations for adults, teens and children across the Rio Grande Valley, including McAllen, Edinburg, Brownsville, Harlingen and Mission, by secure telehealth. Care is available in English and Spanish and there is no waitlist. Patients must be located in Texas at the time of the appointment. Call (956) 266-8476.
- McAllen, Brownsville, Edinburg & the Valley
- Bilingual as standard
- No waitlist
- Evaluated by a psychiatrist
The shortage here is real, and it is not your imagination
The Valley has one of the thinnest supplies of psychiatric care in Texas relative to how many people live here. Families routinely describe the same experience: a referral, a long wait, a drive to San Antonio or Houston for an appointment that lasts twenty minutes, and then the same wait again for the follow-up.
For an ADHD evaluation that pattern is especially costly, because the process is not one visit. Every step that requires a four-hour round trip is a step where people give up — and then nothing gets diagnosed, and a child carries it through another school year.
Telehealth removes the drive. It does not thin the evaluation: the same psychiatrist, the same history, the same written report at the end.
We are on the same river
DaniCare is in Laredo, two hours upriver from McAllen. We are not a national telehealth company that added Texas to a map. The way families live here — two languages in one house, relatives on both sides, school records that come from more than one system — is how our own patients live, because they are our neighbours.
That matters in a specific, practical way. An ADHD diagnosis requires showing the pattern goes back to childhood. If those years happened in Reynosa or Matamoros, in Spanish, in a different school system, we can work from that. It is not an awkward exception here. It is ordinary.
In person, if you want it
Most Valley patients are seen by video, because that is what makes the process survivable. But we do have a physical office, and you are welcome in it: the Laredo Medical Center, about two hours up Highway 83.
Some families want the first appointment face to face and the rest by video. That is a reasonable way to do it and we are happy to arrange it.
What the evaluation involves
A full history
A psychiatrist asks how attention, memory and impulsivity show up at work, at school and at home, how far back the pattern runs, and what else might explain it.
Ruling things out
Sleep, anxiety, depression, thyroid conditions and substance use all imitate ADHD. A medical doctor can consider and exclude them. A screening questionnaire cannot.
A clear answer, in writing
You are told whether this is ADHD, what else was considered, and what the options are. You keep the written report.
Treatment if you want it
Medication is prescribed only when a diagnosis is made, it is clinically appropriate, and state and federal law permit it.
For Valley parents
McAllen ISD, Edinburg CISD, Brownsville ISD, Harlingen CISD, PSJA and Mission CISD all work through 504 plans and special education referrals, and each asks for documentation of the diagnosis and its effect on classroom functioning rather than a letter naming a condition.
We ask for input from home and school both, because the pattern has to appear in more than one setting before a diagnosis can be made — and because that is the report a district actually acts on.
Cost and insurance
We accept most major plans in Texas, including Medicaid and Medicare. Our team checks your specific plan and tells you what to expect to pay before anything is booked.
Without insurance there are still options, and asking is normal. Call and we will talk it through.
Why Texans wait for ADHD care
The shortage is not evenly spread: in much of Texas there is simply no psychiatrist to see.
- 170Texas counties had no licensed psychiatrist in 2023. Texas DSHS via Texas Tribune
- 246 of 254Texas counties are wholly or partly designated as federal mental health professional shortage areas. Texas DSHS via Texas Tribune
- 1 per 11,758residents is the statewide ratio of psychiatrists to Texans. Texas DSHS via Texas Tribune
Figures verified September 2026. Telehealth does not fix a workforce shortage, but it does remove the drive.
Serving the Rio Grande Valley
Telehealth appointments are available to patients located anywhere in Texas, including:
- McAllen
- Brownsville
- Edinburg
- Harlingen
- Mission
- Pharr
- Weslaco
- San Juan
- Rio Grande City
- Hidalgo County
- Cameron County
- Starr County
Our office
DaniCare PsychiatryLaredo Medical Center
1700 E Saunders St, Suite B270
Laredo, TX 78041-5401
Phone: (956) 266-8476
About two hours from McAllen up Highway 83. Valley patients are usually seen by video, but in-person appointments are available here for anyone who wants one.
Rio Grande Valley ADHD evaluation FAQs
Do I have to drive to Laredo?
No. Valley patients are usually seen by secure video from home. In-person appointments are available in Laredo, about two hours up Highway 83, if you would rather be seen face to face.
Can we be seen in Spanish?
Yes, as a matter of course rather than by special arrangement. We are a border practice and Spanish is a working language here.
My child's early school records are from Mexico. Does that matter?
It does not prevent an evaluation. Bring what you have, in whichever language it is in, and we will work from it. This is ordinary for us.
Is there a waitlist?
No. That is the main reason Valley families come to us rather than waiting months. Call (956) 266-8476 and our team will tell you what is available.
Do I need to be in Texas for the appointment?
Yes. You must be physically located in Texas at the time of the visit, because that is where the licence applies.
Is the evaluation done by a psychiatrist?
Yes. Evaluations are led by a psychiatrist — a medical doctor — who can rule out the conditions that imitate ADHD and prescribe when that is appropriate.
Will I get a report for my child's school?
Yes. The report describes the diagnosis and its effect on school functioning, which is what a Texas district asks for when considering a 504 plan or a special education referral.
This page is for general information and is not a diagnosis or medical advice. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) or call 911.
