Getting Diagnosed, NHS funding in the uk?

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well yeah I suppose that's true...children should get priority as it will be easier to help correct any issues while they're still young.

but that shouldn't mean adults should have such a struggle with accessing help. im sure if they funded mental health/diagnostics properly it would save money long term, if peoples condition worsens it will just cost them more to help in the end anyway so if they think there's a "saving" they probably lose it at the other end anyway. a stitch in time saves 9 and all that...

http://www.autism.org.uk/about-autism/a ... laint.aspx

http://www.autism.org.uk/about-autism/a ... nosis.aspx





http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Autistic-s ... nosis.aspx



http://www.autismeurope.org/publication ... -rights-4/


http://www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/live/1 ... /59685.pdf



http://publications.nice.org.uk/diagnos ... ism-ifp142

18 months ago I asked my GP for an assessment and was seen by a mental health centre psychologist who listened carefully but had little experience of diagnosing adults, so she gave me a test designed for children.
After concluding I was not AS but had social difficulties she told me I would benefit from CBT but there was no funding for it.

After thinking on this, reading books, coming to Wrong Planet, examining my life - I concluded she was wrong and I asked for a second opinon on the basis I should have been assessed by someone with experience of diagnosing adults. The GP who saw me today (I'd never seen him before) read the psychologist's notes and told me I was wasting my time looking for a "diagnosis" or a "label" and should just get on with trying to make the best of what I already knew.

I argued it would be better for me to have a reliable diagnosis so I could focus my efforts on getting the kind of support that would be most useful to me. For example, a counceller who has experience of AS councelling, or CBT if that turned out to be more appropriate.
In the end he said he would put me forward for a second opinion, but reluctantly. He clearly indicated I was wasting his time.

He was right in saying I should make the most of what I have. I don't want to make excuses, or claim benefits. I do want to be get help to make the most of my talents and opportunities and to overcome the depression that has resulted from social isolation.
But he was very wrong in assuming I wasn't trying to make the most of what I have. Wrong to accept the first assessment unchallenged and wrong for interrupting me repeatedly when I tried to explain my reasons.

I feel discouraged, but I have to do what is best for me. The worst that could have happened is the GP could have said "no". Now I wait to see.

After waiting a while for an appointment letter to arrive I went back to the Practice today. I discovered that there is no record of the GP I saw last year making a referral for me like he said he would. I have asked to see another GP at the Practice. Hopefully I will find out why.

One could spend time and money on a solicitor, while governments spend it on bank bailouts.

My GP told me I will have to wait 6-8 months to get 1 appointment with a psychologist (he could not tell me if this would be a clinical psychologist with experience of diagnosing ASDs in adults), or to be told there is no longer funding for diagnosing ASDs in adults. I contacted several NHS departments to find out what to expect, but to no avail. I am based in Haringey.

My wife got a diagnosis through the charity Open Doors who were running a program in our area. Our original GP was next to useless and wouldn't even believe we had AS.

Is it worth trying a charity?

It is. Any advice on where to look? Would this be part of the NAS directory?

This is a link to the group we used in Grimsby:
http://www.thebiglifegroup.com/open-door/

They run an Asperger group linked to Navigo (again in Grimsby) where the psychiatrists came from:
http://navigocare.co.uk/

and a link to the contact us part for the big life group:
http://www.thebiglifegroup.com/contact-us/

I guess it couldn't hurt to write them a mail or ring them. Hopefully they can point you in the right direction.

Let me know if you need any more info.

Just realised they are part of the NHS, but I'm sure they have charity sponsorship too. Apologies for any confusion.

Unfortunately, I can't offer any real advice to getting diagnosed in the UK as my route to diagnosis was so unusual.

I had never even considered that I had an ASD until a Facebook friend posted a link to a version of the AQ and several of my Facebook friends all scored in the low teens at most. I took it and scored about 45/50. Which struck me as a bit odd but I didn't really think anything of it.

Anyway, I eventually ended up in a medium security psychiatric unit owing to developing quite serious bipolar disorder and run-ins with the law. I'm told that what led to doing a full assessment for diagnosis was that at one of my clinical team meetings (which involves your consultant psychiatrist, his/her junior-ish doctor, psychiatric nurses, social worker, psychologist, occupational therapist etc) my social worker asked after having spent several sessions with me "Does he have Asperger Syndrome?".

My psychologist told me that usually when it's suggested that a patient might have an ASD they all keep throwing up examples of why not based upon various observations, but with me everyone pretty much went "That makes sense", "That would explain such and such" etc with no-one coming up with reasons as to why I wasn't on the spectrum.

As a result they did a full assessment with my psychologist and social worker doing the full background interviews with my parents and so on with everything resulting in a formal diagnosis.

However, that's not going to be most people's experience of getting assessed on the NHS and forensic psychiatric units have an incentive to try and get accurate diagnoses of people's psychiatric issues in order to provide effective treatment and therapy. Secure psychiatric units are expensive places as in something like a quarter of a million per patient per year type expensive.

Wow! It must vary wildly from area to area.

As I have had a much easier time, thus far, with my local NHS regarding an Asperger's diagnosis.

From my GP visit, where he immediately made an appointment for me at the local psychiatric centre, to the first appointment ( just six weeks later ) and then follow up appointments where it got more in depth.

My most recent appointment was in december, & I was told then, that my next appointment would be months away. I'm not sure why, but I am happy with what has happened thus far, in terms of how fast it has all been happening and the relative ease of everything.

Especially in comparison to some of you.

I was expecting battles ( firstly with the GP & then with the psychiatrists ) that have simply never materialised. Luckily.

It has been pretty good. I can't complain.

Wow! It must vary wildly from area to area.

As I have had a much easier time, thus far, with my local NHS regarding an Asperger's diagnosis.

From my GP visit, where he immediately made an appointment for me at the local psychiatric centre, to the first appointment ( just six weeks later ) and then follow up appointments where it got more in depth.

My most recent appointment was in december, & I was told then, that my next appointment would be months away. I'm not sure why, but I am happy with what has happened thus far, in terms of how fast it has all been happening and the relative ease of everything.

Especially in comparison to some of you.

I was expecting battles ( firstly with the GP & then with the psychiatrists ) that have simply never materialised. Luckily.

It has been pretty good. I can't complain.

No worries, I appreciate your time and effort!