I also had an evaluation but mine was for the initial visit with my first PM doctor (whom I eventually fired!). This was part of his patient profiling before he would diagnose or treat me. I have since found out the my Work Comp would have made me get an Eval anyway, so it worked out to my advantage.

When I first received the packet I was blow away at how big it was. There were two test all multiple choice and they were very similar in concept and questioning. I was overwhelmed at first because I didn't want them to think I was crazy or that I was making things up. Of course, you could look at my leg and tell that I had full blown RSD. I decided to just dig in, be totally honest and not get frustrated. Took forever to complete but I did and turn it in at my initial visit. They took it and scanned it into the computer to get the various results.

Then I meet with the psychologist who did a one-on-one evaluation (took about an hour). During that visit he informed me that the evaluation is to determine several factors (here are a few that I can remember); how you mentally and physically react/handle pain, how your lifestyle (family, work, etc.) effect and/or contribute to your pain, how you handle and process stressful situation, make sure that I am not a person seeking a source for prescription drugs (drug addict), and gave me information on how Work Comp usually handles cases involving RSD. I insisted that my husband be present to make sure that I was not pressured into a situation that would result in a negative diagnosis.

I received a favorable diagnosis... I am not crazy, I do have REAL pain and I do handle stress well. The only thing he recommended is that I quit smoking - which I am doing very well with.

When I changed PM doctors, he reviewed my Eval and then proceeded with treatment of drugs and eventually, implant of SCS.

If you are required to complete an Eval I would recommend that you take your time, have a quiet place to concentrate on the test and don't try to beat the test... just be honest. You want to get an accurate reading because it will help you in the long run for the proper treatment.