Assessment
In this section:
Autism assessment
ADHD Assessment
Autism assessment
Diagnostic assessments for autism and ADHD are complex and should be detailed, based on more than one source of information (as far as possible) and should take the whole lifespan into account.
At NeSS, we follow NICE guidelines for autism assessment, which can be found here:
What this means
Your assessment might take place over one long appointment, or we might need to invite you back for further appointments. We will ask you to bring someone who has known you well for a long time to the assessment. We know this is not always possible though, so don't worry if you can't.
Please feel free to bring any sensory items, fidget toys or anything you find comforting or soothing to your appointments. You will be able to have breaks in the appointment if you need them and you will (mostly) be able to move around the room if needed.
Your assessment will likely involve more than one clinician. Your appointment letter will tell you whether there will be one or two people in the appointment.
You will have already completed the referral form and screening questionnaires, which will be considered part of the assessment.
At your assessment, the clinician will ask you (and/or the person you have brought with you) about your developmental history (what you were like as a child, whether you had any difficulties, whether you had any favourite activities or hobbies, how you interacted with other children etc). It can be helpful to bring old school reports to these appointments, if you have them, as they can help with remembering what you were like when you were younger.
We will also do some direct assessment of social interaction, most frequently with an assessment tool called ADOS-2. We may also do other tests of social communication and understanding.
Sometimes we may need to ask people to come back for further tests around language, communication, executive function or intellectual abilities.
When the assessments have been completed, there will be a discussion between the clinicians involved, looking at the evidence to determine whether it meets the criteria for a diagnosis of autism. Sometimes it will be possible to decide this on the day of assessment and tell you at your appointment; sometimes there will need to be further discussion within the team before a decision is reached. The clinicians will tell you at your assessment if this is the case.
What happens next?
If you do not receive a diagnosis of autism, we will explain how the criteria have not been met and we will offer some suggestions if we think there is another explanation for your difficulties.
If you receive a diagnosis of autism, we will discuss your feelings and thoughts about this and will consider whether there are any unmet needs around health or social care.
We also offer a post-diagnostic course at the Nottingham Recovery College called Living Well with Autism, which you can access for further understanding and support.
ADHD Assessment
At NeSS we follow the UKAAN Adult ADHD Assessment Quality Assurance Standards (AQAS), which can be found here:
What this means
Your assessment might take place over one long appointment, or we might need to invite you back for further appointments. We will ask you to bring someone who has known you well for a long time to the assessment. We know this is not always possible though, so don't worry if you can't.
Please feel free to bring any sensory items, fidget toys or anything you find comforting or soothing to your appointments. You will be able to have breaks in the appointment if you need them and you will (mostly) be able to move around the room if needed.
You will have already completed the referral form and screening questionnaires, which will be considered part of the assessment.
At your assessment, the clinician will ask you (and/or the person you have brought with you) about your developmental history (what you were like as a child, whether you had any difficulties, etc). It can be helpful to bring old school reports to these appointments, if you have them, as they can help with remembering what you were like when you were younger.
We will also do a structured diagnostic interview with you and/or the person you have brought with you (called a DIVA or ACE+). This will focus on finding evidence of the symptoms of ADHD. We may also ask you to complete more questionnaires about your difficulties or do some computerised tests of attention and restlessness.
Sometimes we may need to ask people to come back for further tests around language, communication, executive function or intellectual abilities.
When the assessments have been completed, you will receive feedback about the diagnostic outcome. Sometimes it will be possible to decide this on the day of assessment and tell you at your appointment; sometimes there will need to be further discussion within the team before a decision is reached. The clinicians will tell you at your assessment if this is the case.
What happens next?
If you do not receive a diagnosis of ADHD, we will explain how the criteria have not been met and we will offer some suggestions if we think there is another explanation for your difficulties.
If you receive a diagnosis of ADHD, we will discuss your feelings and thoughts about this and will consider whether there are any unmet needs around health or social care. We will also ask you if you would like to consider medication and can refer you to our medication pathway if appropriate.
We also offer a post-diagnostic course at the Nottingham Recovery College called Living Well with ADHD, which you can access for further understanding and support.
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