Member's statement: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Diagnosis and Treatment

Member's statement by Ms Paula Bradshaw on 12 February 2024.

MLA

Ms Paula Bradshaw

Party at the time

Alliance Party

Date

12 February 2024

Type

Member's statement

Business

Members' Statements

Heading

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Diagnosis and Treatment

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4217580

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I rise to talk about an issue about which I receive a lot of communication in my constituency office: the lack of commissioned services in health and social care trusts for the diagnosis and treatment of people with ADHD. I am sure that many others in the Chamber will also have been contacted by people who are frustrated that they have been unable to secure a diagnosis through their local trust, leaving them with two main options. The first is that they can go on a waiting list. In my area, a child or young person can expect to wait for five and a half years in the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust. Last week, I heard from a constituent that they had been advised that the waiting list for adults has now grown to eight years. The other option for people is to seek a private diagnosis. We know that that option, when delivered in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance, can cost up to £1,800. Many people have told me that they have had to borrow that money, causing great financial hardship to themselves and their family, just to obtain a diagnosis. It should also be noted that even many private providers have closed their books, such is their backlog for new assessments. Those with a private diagnosis are not that much further forward. They then require a shared care agreement between their GP and their private consultant. The vast majority of GPs are reluctant to enter into those agreements, as there is a substantial risk from the medication, which is on the amber list. The people with private diagnoses are forced to pay privately again for their review appointments and their medication. I have spoken to the leadership of all the health and social care trusts about the issue. They would all like to deliver an ADHD assessment and treatment service. However, it has not been commissioned by the strategic planning and performance group (SPPG), which is the commissioning body in the Department of Health. The societal impact from the lack of diagnosis, treatment and care is far-reaching. Parents have told me about their struggle to support their children through their primary and post-primary education and to deal with high levels of anxiety and difficulty with concentration. Students coming to study at Queen's University Belfast, which is in my constituency, have told me about their inability to find a GP who will allow for the continuation of prescriptions for their medication, which has stabilised their condition for many years in their home country. It is worth reflecting on what happens when we get it right. One man recently told me that, when he was able to find the correct medication for his condition, he was able to significantly grow his business and take on more staff. We have to get the issue sorted in order to allow the trusts to recruit and/or train suitably qualified psychiatrists and to get their services up and running. We cannot lose any more time in the commissioning process.

513 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 09:35 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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