CATCH-uS: Children with ADHD in transition to adult services
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Young people with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in transition from children’s services to adult services (CATCh-uS): a mixed methods project using national surveillance, qualitative and mapping studies.
IRAS ID
159209
Contact name
Tamsin Ford
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Exeter Medical School
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
This project focuses on what happens to young people (YP) with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) when they are too old to stay with children’s services. We know little about how many areas have specialist services for adults with ADHD and how many YP need to move to them when they are too old for children’s services. Until the late twentieth century, ADHD was a controversial diagnosis. Once generally accepted, it is seen as a developmental disorder of children; therefor, adult mental health services are not set up to manage young adults who have ADHD and continue to want support. There are National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines about the management for ADHD in adulthood, and this often involves taking medication that General Practitioners feel inexperienced to prescribe without support from specialists, as happens with children. Existing work suggests that YP with ADHD are particularly likely not to transfer to adult mental health services but there has yet to be an in depth study of this issue in the UK. This will be the first national study to examine how many YP are in need of services for ADHD as adults and will also explore how current service users and service providers experience this transition. This project has two main streams of research:
1. A six months surveillance study of YP with ADHD on medication that are within six months of the age-boundary for discharge from their children’s service with a nine month-follow-up to find out where these YP were transferred to.
2. We will conduct interviews with YP and health care professionals to explore their views and experiences of the transition of YP with ADHD between children’s and adult services.
3. We will map services available for young adults with ADHD.REC name
Yorkshire & The Humber - South Yorkshire Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/YH/0426
Date of REC Opinion
20 Oct 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion