Which Professionals Can Help In Treating ADHD

We all know that there are many medical disorders or situations that co-exist along with ADHD. According to a research, approximately 85 percent of children having ADHD tend to suffer from other medical conditions that negatively affect their learning, growth, and overall development. This directly means that treatment of ADHD involves a variety of professionals right from assessment, diagnosis, and treatment. Listed below are the different professionals involve in treating ADHD.

• Case coordinator
• Health visitors
• GPs
• Teachers
• Child and adolescent psychiatrists
• Pediatricians
• Educational and clinical psychologists
• Speech and language therapists
• Occupational therapists
• Nurses
• Social workers

Psychiatrists, psychologists, occupational therapists, nurses, and social workers are a part of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS). It is a part of NHS that provides mental health services such as psychological assessment and treatment for children.

A medical professional who has taken proper training must only diagnose ADHD in children. Such experts include a child and adolescent psychiatrist or a pediatrician.

Case Coordinator

One of the necessary conditions for proper assessment and treatment of ADHD is clear, unambiguous, and constant communication among the involved professionals. An ideal way to make this sure is to appoint a single person as a case coordinator or key worker, who can be:

• Community pediatrician
• Educational psychologist
• Social worker

The case coordinator performs the following duties:

• Developing a reliable relationship with the family of the child
• Synchronizing the inputs of the involved professionals that includes even documenting the sittings with you and your child
• Stimulating clear communication among the child, family, and involved professionals

In real, the communication among the child, family and the involved professionals might be informal and might vary drastically. To standardize this and many other issues, the Children’s National Service Framework is putting their efforts in developing national standards across the NHS. The goal of these standards is to make sure that smooth access to services and easy improvement through them is offered any time to children.

Health Visitors

These people help in detecting developmental problems even before your child starts going to school. Therefore, they can be the first ones to trace the initial symptoms of ADHD in your child.

GPs

GP is the first point of contact to seek help and support when parents suspect their child’s behavior. On doing physical assessment of your child, the GP might provide referral of a specialist depending upon the assessment results. This specialist can be either a child and adolescent psychiatrist or a pediatrician who have knowledge about ADHD.

Apart from referring your child to a specialist, your GP can agree to work with the specialist to treat ADHD. In this case, the GP will:

• Prescribe medicines suggested by the specialist.
• Monitor your child during the treatment.
• Consult the specialist if there are any concerns regarding the treatment.

Sometimes, the specialist might prescribe and monitor medication without the presence of GP. In this case, the specialist needs to inform about it and changes from time to time to the GP.

Specialist

A specialist will conduct various tests and ask different questions to you and your child before deciding whether your child is having ADHD. For example, a specialist can test certain development skills such as catching a flying pan or hopping. He/She can also questions related to your child’s past medical conditions and treatments, family background, behavior in school and so on.

After diagnosing ADHD in your child, the specialist will develop a treatment strategy according to your child’s needs. This might also include the entry of other specialists such as clinical psychologist, which is taken care of by the ADHD specialist in agreement with the GP. The specialist might also give in writing about the prescribed medicines to be given in school for the school teacher.

Lastly, but not the least, the specialist might decide whether your child needs psychotherapy. He/She might do this therapy for your child or might refer a clinical psychologist.

Clinical Psychologists

A clinical psychologist might function on a one-to-one basis with your child or in a group. He/She offers two therapies listed below.

• Psychotherapy
  Aids in coping up with emotional difficulties and challenges of daily life as a part of ADHD.
• Behavioral Therapy
  Aids in improving the overall behavior of your child.

Educational Psychologists

Clinical and educational psychologists both have degrees in psychology. Then, what’s the difference between the two? Well, a clinical psychologist takes postgraduate training and is a part of mental health service group, while an educational psychologist takes two years of classroom teaching experience. An educational psychologist:

• Helps children and young people cope up with learning, emotional, and behavior problems.
• Advices parents and teachers regarding the application of behavioral strategies.
• Prepares a statement of Special Educational Needs (SEN), which specifies about the help your child needs to learn and educate.
• Is a part of local education authority.

Psychiatrist versus Psychologist

A psychiatrist is a skilled medical doctor, who can prescribe medicines. On the other hand, a psychologist cannot prescribe medicines, as he/she is not qualified to do so.

Teachers

It is the teacher or a school health team who will ask you to take your child to an ADHD specialist. During the treatment, the teachers of your child have a say in the evaluation of his/her behavior. In this ongoing assessment, the teacher rates the varied characteristics of your child’s behavior using an appropriate rating scale, which is similar to a questionnaire. This provides a conclusion as to whether the prescribed medicines are effective. Further, the teachers:

• Might apply techniques to improve your child’s academic performance and self-confidence such as teaching learning skills and boosting its morale to perform a specific task
• Apply behavioral therapy in cooperation with parents and other professionals to tackle problematic behavior for better conduct of your child

Children with ADHD study in an ordinary school, but receive special training.

Speech and Language Therapists

Children with ADHD are more likely to have speech and hearing problems. To tackle these problems, your child might need a speech and language therapist. Such a therapist might take help of parents and teachers to improve your child’s communication skills.

Occupational Therapist

An occupational therapist deals with co-ordination problems and other difficulties such as dressing, eating, and handwriting. He/She will usually coordinate with the child’s school too to overcome these problems.

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