A radical rethink of how neurodiversity is treated is needed for the NHS to keep up, a think tank warns.

The extraordinary rise in demand for autism assessments and ADHD treatments in England has overtaken the NHS’s capacity to meet it, a think tank says.

Since 2019, there has been a five-fold rise in people waiting to see an autism specialist and a 51% increase in prescriptions for ADHD medication, according to the Nuffield Trust.

Growing backlogs and longer waiting times are negatively impacting people’s daily lives, it warned.

It said a “radical rethink” was needed.

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One out of every 100 people is on the autistic spectrum, it is estimated, while 2.6 million people in the UK have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) .

The Nuffield Trust said 24% of patients referred for ADHD in England were having to wait one to two years for an assessment.

On top of this, thousands of people with ADHD have been unable to get prescribed medication amid a major supply shortage. This was announced in September due to “manufacturing issues and an increased global demand”.

Meanwhile,172,000 adults and children are on a waiting list for an autism assessment - the highest recorded figure - according to NHS data analysed by the think tank.

Between October and December 2023, the median time spent on a waiting list after an autism referral rose to over nine months, compared with four months in the same period in 2019.

  • galmuthEnglish
    2·
    9 months ago

    The situation is awful currently; there’s a definite need for a complete rethink. I’m not sure what the NHS’s waiting time measurement is based on, but my anecdotal experience isn’t even close. I mean, I’d love to be only waiting 9 months - My son’s autism assessment was recently pushed back until around 2026, and we’ve been waiting for multiple years already since we were referred by a pediatrician.

    We only really need the assessment so he gets proper support in school. Ideally there’d be some sort of needs-based occupational health assessment available without the requirement of a diagnosis.