Dr Keith Johnson
Neuropsychiatrist
What happens in the Adult ADHD assessment?
The Adult ADHD assessment is done in two parts:
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1) Clinical Interview (60 min)
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This is a standard clinical review that cover your symptoms, difficulties as well as other relevant information about your physical and mental health. If we proceed to the testing phase, you will be asked to collect information about childhood symptoms either from your parents (or an appropriate alternative informant) or in the form of school reports.
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2) Testing session (120 min)
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This phase involves a number of relevant validated computer based and paper tests about ADHD and other relevant mental and physical health comorbidities At the end of the session there is usually sufficient information to make a diagnosis and discuss a management plan.
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How is ADHD treated?
There is effective treatment for ADHD and its associated syndromes. While there is no treatment that can "cure" ADHD, there are effective treatments to manage the symptoms. Medications (both stimulant and non-stimulant medications) have good evidence of treatment response for many people with ADHD. There is a significant knowledge base to attest to the efficacy and safety of medications to treat the three core symptoms of ADHD. Medications tend to be less successful in managing executive dysfunction and many patients with ADHD also struggle with emotional regulation, which has also been linked to executive dysfunction through a difficulty in regulating one’s own emotional/behavioural responses. For this reason in addition to medication we recommend ADHD coaching and indeed a combination of medication and coaching is the gold standard treatment.
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Medications have somewhat been overhyped in the media in terms of their effects and what they do and how quickly they exert effects. What we aim to do with respect to the medications is find a medication regime that is effective, simple to use and covers the majority of the day. For this reason, working out a good medication regime can take several months.
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