Supporting people with ADHD goes far beyond treating individuals. Holistic ADHD care means designing services collaboratively with patients based on their needs. Improving access to care and adopting a family or community approach is key.
Let's take a look at why holistic approaches to ADHD care are so important. This is what health providers can do to better help patients.
Speaker info:
Jess Brunet: Clinical Team Manager, Qbtech
Ceri Reed: Founder, Parents Voices in Wales CIC
Penny Lazell: Senior Clinical Advisor, Qbtech
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ADHD is an intergenerational challenge, requiring whole family support
ADHD can often be present in different family members across generations. Jess shares that during a child’s ADHD diagnosis, a parent can often recognize those same symptoms in themselves. These adults have often lived with ADHD for many years, without a diagnosis, and without the care they need.
As Jess notes, “When we’re thinking about holistic care… I almost find it strange that we don’t have family-based clinics.” Ceri also questions why clinicians typically don't profile families during assessments.
We know that undiagnosed ADHD has far-reaching consequences across social constructs.“For me, the gold standard would be whole family support,” she adds.
Is there a need to develop patient toolkits for different experiences of ADHD?
Everyone’s experience of ADHD is unique. As the panel highlights, ADHD presents differently for women, and comorbidities are common. These can include autism, dyslexia, dysgraphia, depression, anxiety, and eating disorders. Every comorbid condition differently affects how clinicians diagnose and treat ADHD.
“What people need in order to feel well and reach their potential is going to be really different and needs to be individualized, but also come from the voice of the individual,” Jess explains.
This idea of empowering patients and providing them with a menu or toolkit of support and psychoeducation to choose from is a key concept in holistic care models. It also helps those who haven’t yet had a formal diagnosis or are looking for resources that can help them understand their experiences.
“There has to be that information, that toolkit out there, for those people who are self-diagnosed or recognize that symptomology. And it probably isn’t just ADHD, it’s going to be lots of other co-occurring conditions that may be involved as well.” Penny adds.
Co-production: A model for ADHD service design
Ceri shares how co-production has been used in Wales to bring together families and health service providers to discuss the design and delivery of ADHD care.
It’s a collaborative model, but one where families take the lead and say what they need from health providers.“When we get it right, it’s wonderful, because we meet the needs of people who are going to come through that pathway.”
“Every agency is a gateway”
For holistic ADHD care to really work, every provider, even those not directly working in healthcare, have a responsibility to help get people onto the ADHD care pathway.
Ceri explains: “We need to be looking at housing, the criminal justice system, the substance use services, and saying: In the cohorts that are coming through our doors, we’re going to have a higher incidence of ADHD than you are in the general population, and therefore, let’s start screening and let’s get these people on that pathway.”
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