Tertiary referral

[debs40]

I am looking to get a referral to a specialist centre for my son who is 7 and is being assessed for autism.

The CAMHS team here are awful. A dreadul, incompetent woman runs it and there is a massive waiting list. I have not confidence that she has any depth of expertise. They are being taken over by another Trust in an effort to clear their waiting lists so there is alot of uncertainty about what is happening.

I am being told that my son will have to go through an assessment process with the team here before I can apply for a second opinion with a tertiary level (specialist) service. This seems unfair as it basically means that my son will have to undergo intrusive and lengthy testing twice.

The Hospital Trust will have to pay no matter as they will have to pay for a second opinion (I understand there is no obligation to do so but that this is good practice) so I don't know why we are being forced to stay here.

Does anybody know if we can argue to go elsewhere if we need specialist diagnosis? My son is admittedly a complex case.

You can try via the exceptional funding route at your local PCT, but it is extremely unlikely approval would be given (I work in this area). The patient pathway is there for a reason, which is virtually always based on clinical evidence. I would make a formal complaint to the children and young people commissioning manager at the PCT and that way keep the pressure up.

If that doesn't help, go via PALS or your local MP. There should be a limit to the waiting time (18 weeks?), there are no time limits for tertiary referrals so that can be lengthy.

My goodness, children don't get seen on the social communication disorder list for about two years! This seems to be perfectly acceptable to everyone