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There is currently a national shortage of medication that helps to treat ADHD symptoms. This is due to manufacturing problems and increased global demand.

Our service offers private ADHD titration instead of waiting for NHS funding via Right to Choose. Our fees for assessments include the cost of one prescription.

Titration

A highly skilled consultant psychiatrist will conduct a thorough assessment of your ADHD. This will include medical history and an assessment using the standard ADHD rating scales and questionnaires.

After your evaluation, you will be informed if medication is considered to be beneficial for your situation. The discussion will take place at your follow-up appointment (which may be scheduled in person, via video link, or over the phone). Your physician will go over the various medication options available. If you decide to start taking medication, we can help you the option of titrating your dose to ensure the best balance of benefits and side effects for you.

This process can take several weeks and involves gradually adjusting your child’s medication until the appropriate balance is reached. It is not unusual to have to titrate three or four medications before finding the best one for your child’s ADHD symptoms. It’s important for parents to be involved in this titration process and keep a close eye on their child’s behaviour, so that they can inform the doctor if the medicine is helping or causing adverse effects.

If you do not decide to return to NHS treatment and have decided to return to NHS care, your medication will be issued with a private prescription which you’ll have to pay for at the pharmacy (this is not included in your consultation fees). You will be required to attend every six months to check your medication, which includes pulse and blood pressure readings. Annual checks are also required.

Follow-up appointments

Once the evaluation has been completed, you will be able to make appointment with the psychiatrist, as appropriate. The appointment is usually done via zoom video call. However, in some cases, it may be possible to have an audio-only consultation to be scheduled (again at an additional cost).

At this point, we will discuss any treatment options and agree upon a bespoke individualised ADHD medication titration program. This will include a review and discussion of your medication dosage and any adverse effects you may be experiencing. The cost of these titration adhd medication sessions is PS150 for face-to face sessions and PS60 for telephone or online video consultations. The pharmacy will charge you for any cost of medication.

The psychiatrist will also ask you about your family history and the impact that your ADHD symptoms impact your life, as well as any relationship issues you might be facing or any other mental health problems that you might be experiencing. ADHD can be a genetic condition, and it’s vital to examine your family history to determine if you’re at a greater chance of developing this disorder.

It is important to be honest and truthful to the doctor during this assessment, as the information they receive will be used to determine whether your ADHD is in line with the diagnostic criteria. This is a vital step in the process because if you don’t do it, it could result in an incorrect diagnosis, and thus an incorrect prescribing of medication.

If you decide to seek treatment for ADHD, we’ll arrange a follow-up appointment with a psychiatrist who specializes in this area. If you want to start treatment immediately it is possible to start treatment when you are diagnosed. Or you can wait for two weeks before considering the implications of the diagnosis and the options available to you.

If you’re not sure what your preference is, we suggest that you speak to your GP prior to booking your private examination as some providers have different rules regarding whether they require the submission of a GP referral letter or not. Check if your GP accepts a Shared Care Agreement, which means that you will be referred to them after you leave the clinic for medication prescription.

Medication

For many who wish to obtain an official diagnosis of ADHD medication is a key part of their journey. It can be difficult to get an appointment with a psychiatrist on the NHS. NHS waiting lists are notoriously long, and GPs are often reluctant to refer patients to specialist services.

Asking your GP to refer through Right to Choose is one way to avoid this (see psychiatry UK and ADHD 360). You can choose a service that offers a private assessment service and the titration. This can cut down on wait time by a significant amount and is more convenient if you are working and have a full schedule.

After you have been diagnosed, your doctor will evaluate you to determine if need medication adjustment. You will need to complete forms that vary by doctor however the most commonly used ones are self-reporting questions and medical histories going back to childhood and adulthood. These forms will help your clinician determine if there are circumstances that indicate you shouldn’t be taking ADHD medication, in the event that they’ve been prescribed.

If you are being titrated, the medication will consist of stimulants and non-stimulant drugs. These will be thoroughly tested and monitored to find the right combination for you. The titration adhd procedure can be lengthy and may require multiple appointments before your dose is stable.

Depending on the type of medication you are taking, follow up appointments will be either monthly or quarterly. Your clinician will check whether you are stable on the medication, document any side effects that you’ve experienced, and make any necessary adjustments to ensure that you remain on a safe dosage. You’ll also be required to undergo a regular health check which can include blood pressure and pulse readings, as well as weight and weight measurements as well as an annual check-up.

For some it could be because they are satisfied with their medication and don’t require an additional discussion regarding their titration. If you need to discuss your titration or treatment plan more thoroughly it is possible that you will be referred back to the private doctor who performed your initial assessment. If this occurs, the titration consultation will be included in the consultation fee, and they will be given their medication on an individual prescription (see Consultation fees above). This could cost more than an NHS prescription because the pharmacy will charge for the medication.