Adult Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Service
The Leeds Adult ADHD Service provides specialist assessment and management of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in adults.
ADHD affects 2-4% of adults and can cause significant issues for people living with the condition. Fortunately, effective treatments are available.
Our service provides assessment for people over 18 years old with suspected ADHD. A diagnosis can usually be made after 1-2 appointments with one of our clinicians. Following diagnosis, treatment is offered in the form of medication and non-drug related approaches such as group psychoeducation* and work to develop new skills.
*Psychoeducation means supporting service users and their family members about the nature of an illness or condition, how to treat it and live well with it.
Where medication is required, this typically requires several appointments with a clinician to get to the most effective dose.
Once a diagnosis has been made and treatment started, this treatment is then continued by your General Practitioner (GP) under a Shared Care Agreement. Our service will do an annual review of your treatment to ensure that it remains indicated and appropriate.
Our service is run by a small but dedicated team. We do not currently have sufficient resources to meet the demand for our service which is resulting in lengthy waiting times. We are trying to address this and apologise for the issues this may cause you. Read more about our waiting times on this page.
ADHD Medication shortages
There are intermittent supply shortages of medications prescribed to help manage ADHD symptoms. This information has been produced to help our service users and their carers understand the shortage and how it may impact them.
What service users can do
If you are experiencing issues with getting hold of your supply of medication, we are asking you to:
- Check how much medication you have.
- Make sure you order your next supply in plenty of time.
- Only order medicine that you need, to help pharmacies manage supplies. If you over order and stockpile, this can make supply issues worse.
- Try a few different pharmacies in your local area if you cannot obtain your prescription from your usual pharmacy. You can search for your nearest pharmacies on the nhs.uk website.
What medicines are affected by the shortages?
Any of the medicines which are used to manage ADHD may be affected by shortages.
The most up to date information regarding these shortages is available on the SPS website at:
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/prescribing-available-medicines-to-treat-adhd/
For service users and carers:
There may be issues with supply of your medication, there are suitable alternatives available. If you are struggling to obtain a supply of your usual medication speak to:
- Your community pharmacist: they will be able to advise you regarding which products are currently available.
- Your usual prescriber: they will be able to make any necessary adjustments to your prescription to let you continue receiving treatment.
For primary care colleagues:
There is advice on the management of supply interruptions on the SPS website:
Where it is not possible to maintain a supply of the original or bioequivalent medication advice can be sought from the ADHD team on a suitable alternative:
Referrals to the service for diagnosis / initiation of treatment are not affected by these shortages.