UK ADHD Crisis: Long Waits for Diagnosis & Treatment Explored

This episode looks at the critical state of support for people with ADHD in the UK, drawing on a recent parliamentary debate. We highlight the significant challenges within the NHS, including exceptionally long waiting lists for diagnosis, which can stretch for years.

The discussion covers difficulties in accessing treatment, such as problems with shared care models for medication and the lack of essential specialist reviews. The real-world impact of untreated ADHD on education, employment, and mental health is stressed. We also touch upon government efforts, like the ADHD taskforce, aimed at addressing these issues and improving services.

Key Takeaways:

• NHS waiting lists for ADHD assessments can be extremely long, notably reaching 7.5 years for adults in parts of Oxfordshire and 5-8 years in Northern Ireland.
• Due to overwhelming demand and safety concerns, some NHS adult assessment waiting lists have been closed.
• Even with a diagnosis, accessing ongoing medication can be difficult because required annual specialist reviews are not always commissioned services.
• There are problems with shared care agreements, making it challenging for individuals with private diagnoses to receive NHS medication.
• Untreated ADHD has serious consequences, linked to higher school exclusions, lower academic success, substance misuse, and disproportionate representation in the prison population.
• An independent ADHD taskforce has been commissioned to understand challenges and propose recommendations for improving services.
• There have been recent shortages of some ADHD medications, although issues for several types have reportedly been resolved.

Source:  Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Volume 768: debated on Tuesday 10 June 2025

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No outside chatter: source material only taken from Hansard and the Parliament UK website.

Contains Parliamentary information repurposed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0....