Adult ADHD Clinic
Phoenix Mental Health Services offer a comprehensive ADHD assessment and treatment package. The aim of this clinic is to:
Offer a prompt ADHD screen remotely with one of our therapists.
Utilise multiple screenings and questionnaires to allow our ADHD specialist doctors to get as much background information as possible before meeting you, and to generate outcome measures that demonstrate your progress.
Offer a remote or face-to-face assessment with one of our ADHD specialist doctors, who will conduct a clinical assessment whilst considering other diagnoses.
Identify if further investigations are needed and initiate these via your GP.
Make a firm diagnosis, if one has not already been given.
If appropriate, start medication and monitor the effects before handing over to the GP once a patient is stable on medication if this is acceptable to the NHS GP.
Please see our flow chart if you are self-funding for more information about the investigations and treatment modalities we offer, including an objective ADHD pre-assessment called QbCheck. If you would like to know more about our ADHD pre-assessment, you can watch a short video here.
Objective tests included in our ADHD assessment and treatment package are very informative for the ADHD specialist doctors and are very helpful to have before meeting you. It is their experience that a patient can have more than one diagnosis (alongside ADHD) so these objective assessments help uncover whether this is a possibility or not.
If you are diagnosed with ADHD at your assessment, and your consultant thinks medication is the right treatment option for you, there is some important information you need to know about the costs associated with being prescribed ADHD medication. You can read more about this here.
We also offer some services to those with private medical insurance. Please contact our practice team with details of your insurance policy and coverage. Please read this if you have private medical insurance. This usually applies to those who are with BUPA, but please contact us so we can see if this applies to your insurance provider.
Please be mindful that some insurance companies have restrictions on the appointments they authorise once an ADHD diagnosis is made, so you need to be aware that you may have to fund your own follow up appointments. In our experience, people require at least 2 follow-up appointments, which cost £265 per appointment.
We require consent to communicate with your NHS GP and we cannot proceed without this.
If you are unsure if this clinic will be suitable for you, you can book a free chat below or you can ring us on 0370 162 0673 extension 1 or email us on enquiries@phoenix-mhs.com. Alternatively, you can complete our screening tool and email it back to us.
ADHD Medication - Everything You Need to Know About the Cost
The prescription of medication for ADHD is governed by the NHS Amber Protocol which means that your GP can only give you a prescription once you have been stabilised by a specialist. In practice, this means that you need to pay for your own medication until you are stable on your dose of medication. This is agreed between you and your Consultant Psychiatrist. The issuing of the prescription by your Consultant Psychiatrist during appointments is free, however, the medication cost will fall with you. The cost will depend on which medication you have been prescribed and the pharmacy you choose. Cost can vary between £75 and £200 a month depending on the medication.
Once you are on a stable dose, your GP can give you the prescriptions for you to take it to your local pharmacy. The process is the same as it would be for all your other medication.
The Amber Protocol also requires your Consultant Psychiatrist to review your medication and the management of your symptoms with you on a yearly basis. You will be invited to make this appointment about a month before it is due and you will receive a reminder nearer the time. Your continued yearly attendance will enable your GP to continue to prescribe this medication.
Medication Prescription
Medication prescriptions issued to you during your appointments are free of charge. If you require additional prescriptions between appointments, this will incur a prescription charge for each prescription. Similarly, if you require a letter for school, university or occupational health, you will equally be charged for the administration costs. We do not routinely issue letters to employers as all health matters should be dealt with by the employer’s occupational health system. To see the up to date fees, click here.
The prescription is written on a special prescription form (pink pad) and as a practice we keep records of all the pink pad prescriptions we issue. Medications written on a pink pad are controlled drugs and for your prescription to remain valid please do not write anything on it (this may be considered a criminal offence).
If you do not wish to use your prescription, we kindly ask you to return it to us.
ADHD Assessment and (BUPA) Private Medical Insurance
When you enquire about an assessment for adult ADHD, we will send you some screening questionnaires to be completed and returned.
If we think you are unlikely to progress to a diagnosis we will offer you the choice of whether to proceed with a general psychiatric assessment at this point.
In order for a clinician at Phoenix Mental Health Services to assess you, you will need to have had certain tests completed (see below). If you have had them done elsewhere and can give us the ‘paperwork’ you do not need to pay again. Please ask if you think this may apply to you (we can sometimes accept different diagnostic tools to the ones we use).
The tests are as follows:
If you are under 60: you will be asked to complete a computer test. You can read about it here: QbCheck - Phoenix Mental Health Services.
If you are over 60: you will need a series of medical tests which can be arranged with your GP and the results sent to us to ensure your physical health is acceptable in order to treat you if you are found to have ADHD. One of our therapists will work with you and your GP to achieve this.
All patients: you will need to go through a structured therapist-led questionnaire called the DIVA-5.
Fees:
ADHD Assessment:
Phoenix new Adult ADHD assessment
ADHD Follow up appointment
£945
£265