What is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder?
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental psychiatric disorder in which there are significant problems with executive functions.
Common effects –
Attentional control and inhibitory control that cause attention deficits. These symptoms must begin by age six to twelve and persist for more than six months for a diagnosis to be made. In school-aged individuals inattention symptoms often result in poor school performance. Although it causes impairment, particularly in modern society, many children have a good attention span for tasks they find interesting. Hyperactivity, or impulsiveness which is not appropriate for a person’s age can leed to difficult situations within the person’s everyday life.
Despite being the most commonly studied and diagnosed psychiatric disorder in children and adolescents, the cause in the majority of cases is unknown. ADHD is diagnosed approximately three times more in boys than in girls. About 30–50% of people diagnosed in childhood continue to have symptoms into adulthood and between 2–5% of adults have the condition. The condition can be difficult to tell apart from other disorders as well as that of high normal activity.
Support by Personalised 4 All
Many of the individuals we support are prescribed medication to support them manage their condition. As a provider we can enable people to take the lead with their medication and working with health professionals. The most widely known drug used to treat ADHD is Ritalin. This is a stimulant drug that acts to reduce electrical activity in the brain, which in turn reduces hyperactivity. It is widely recognised as useful for children with ADHD and has also been shown to be of some limited benefit for children with autism. Adolescents and adults tend to develop coping skills which make up for some or all of their impairments.
Our personalised approach and individualised support treats everyone as an individual. We know that everyone’s situation is different, which is why we ensure that everyone has a unique support plan to meet their needs.
We know that having predictable, consistent and structured approaches work well and enable individuals to work towards their goals and agreed outcomes. Our person-centred approaches put the individuals we support at the centre of their care and support.
We can provide support to the person within their own home or when access the community.