Will DH ever get NHS ADHD assessment?

[WhereAreWeNow]

DH has ADHD. Everyone who's ever met him thinks so, including doctors in our family and his own GP.
His GP referred him for an NHS assessment years ago (about 3 years) but nothing has happened. He's too disorganised to chase the GP and I can't do it for him.

He's finding it harder to manage in general and I think he really needs help but I don't know how he gets help if NHS waiting lists are years and years.

I had a glimmer of hope about the shared care/right to choose route a while back but it turns out our Trust won't accept any shared care arrangements so that's not an option.

We could afford to go private for the assessment but would that mean paying privately for the medication forever too? How much does it cost?

You could pay for a private assessment then take the proof of diagnosis to your GP & ask for him to be referred to an NHS psychiatrist, who would then assess him for meds. You'd probably still have to wait a while for this referral but more like months than years.

What tinyprophet said. Just pay op, because otherwise he could be waiting for up to 7 years!

Thank you. That's really helpful. He's convinced that if he goes private he'll never be seen by the NHS or be able to get NHS prescriptions for meds but it sounds like that's not true.

You could go private with nhs funding with right to choose. Have a look into it, some providers have only a few weeks wait time

Our trust won't do shared care unfortunately.

Op, you might want to look into Right to Choose if you are in England. That is what one of the previous posters means by going private with NHS funding.

Your husband needs to go to his GP and ask to be referred via Right to Choose. The GP will refer him to a private company who will undertake the diagnostic process on behalf of the NHS. Some GP surgeries won't do shared care even with a Right to Choose diagnosis, however, the company who diagnosed will be able to supply prescriptions at the NHS fee.

Alternatively, as someone else has said, get diagnosed privately and see if your GP will accept the diagnosis and then refer you to NHS psychiatry for medication. I did this, and was lucky enough to have a NHS prescription in my hands just two weeks after referral.

Thanks. Our GP won't do shared care (it's a trust wide policy). If he does right to choose does that mean that the private assessment is free? I thought the prescription would then be private if GP refused shared care. If we know shared care isn't an option, are we better off paying for private assessment and prescriptions while staying in waiting list for NHS assessment?

Hi, yes, the Right to Choose referral and diagnosis is free, even though it is with a private assessor. The NHS pays the private company. When your gp then refuses shared care you just get your prescriptions for the NHS fee from your private company. All it means when the gp refuses shared care is that they won't see you regarding your ADHD, but the private company continue to care for you and deal with your medication, at no cost to you, bar the prescription fee.

Thanks. So what's the shared care bit then? I thought that was the NHS GP accepting the private diagnosis and agreeing to take on the prescription of the meds on the NHS. But from what you're saying DH could get the meds prescribed at NHS fees even without a shared care agreement?

It sounds really frustrating being stuck in that in-between space where everyone agrees something is going on, but the system isn’t actually helping. ADHD Certify is one of the private options people in the UK are turning to when NHS waits drag on. They have a free online screening test on their site, which is just a simple questionnaire about common ADHD traits like focus, organisation, impulsivity, and restlessness. It’s not a diagnosis or anything formal, but it can give a quick sense of whether ADHD is likely and whether it’s worth pushing for a full assessment. Sometimes having even that bit of structure helps make the next step feel a bit less overwhelming when everything else has stalled. I'll mention the link below for your help.

adhdcertify.co.uk/adhd-test-assessment/

Thanks. GP is convinced he's got adhd. He's done the GP questionnaire. Everyone who knows him can see it. It's just getting the assessment and diagnosis that's the problem.

You're welcome. They offer diagnosis too, you can have a look at their website. I just hope that things get easier for you and your DH.