Senate report on assessment and support services for people with ADHD

The Senate inquiry into assessment and support services for people with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactive disorder) has handed down its report.

It found cost, location, cultural and gendered barriers to access and called for national consistency in diagnosis and treatment to improve the lives of those with the condition.

Professor Mark Bellgrove, Deputy Head of School (Research), Monash University School of Psychological Sciences and Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health; Director and Lead, Australian Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guideline for ADHD, Australian ADHD Professionals Association (AADPA) said:

“The Senate Inquiry into Assessment and Support Services for People with ADHD is a landmark moment where the voices of both Australians with a lived experience and professionals involved in care, have been heard. The 15 recommendations are appropriate, practical and formulated with due consideration to both the evidence and the needs of consumers. 

“As a Director of the Australian ADHD Professionals Association (AADPA), and Lead for the development of Australia’s ADHD Clinical Practice Guideline, I am delighted that our call for both a National Framework for ADHD (recommendation #1) and funding for the implementation of the ADHD Clinical Practice Guideline (recommendation #13) are put forward as recommendations for the Australian Government to consider.

“I am also very pleased to see recommendations (#8) encouraging neurodiversity-affirming campaigns to actively shift social attitudes and reduce stigma.”