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Our teams work with people (18+) who either have an existing diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or who have been referred by their GP or other health professional for an assessment.
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Address:
East Suffolk Adult ADHD Team, Walker Close Resource Centre, Foxhall Road, Ipswich, IP3 8LY West Suffolk Adult ADHD Team, F Block, Hospital Road, Bury St Edmunds, IP33 3NR
- Reception phone number: East Suffolk - 01473 279200 West Suffolk - 01284 733188
- Waiting list
- Access this service
- Visiting and onsite facilities
- What this service offers
- How this service support carers including friends and family
- Urgent help
- Resources
Waiting list
Neurodevelopmental waiting-list questionnaire
Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) is contacting people who are currently waiting for an assessment, or for their referral to be screened, to make sure the information we hold is up to date and to check whether they still wish and are eligible to remain on our waiting list.
You may receive a text message from us containing a secure link to a short online questionnaire. This will require you to set up an account with the beseen neurodiversity digital platform, provided by Psyomics, so that you can return to continue completing the questionnaire or view your finalised questionnaire responses.
Is the link genuine?
Yes. NSFT is working with Psyomics to provide this online questionnaire through the beseen neurodiversity digital platform. The text message will come from NHS no-reply.
When you select the link in the text message, you will be taken securely to the beseen neurodiversity digital platform, which is provided by Psyomics on behalf of NSFT.
The website you will see after selecting the link will look different from the NSFT or NHS website.
The beseen neurodiversity digital platform is designed to allow people to provide information securely online. Other NHS neurodevelopmental and mental health services also use the platform to support people to provide information about their care.
You should only access the questionnaire using the link provided in the text message sent to you.
Please note: you will receive a separate questionnaire for ADHD and Autism if you are on both waiting lists. Please complete both.
If something about the message or link does not look right, do not select the link or provide any information.
Why are we contacting you?
We understand that people can wait an extended time for a neurodevelopmental (ADHD and/or Autism) assessment and that circumstances can change while they are waiting.
The questionnaire helps us to:
- Confirm that you still want to and are eligible to remain on the NSFT waiting list for an ADHD and/or Autism assessment
- Check that your contact details and circumstances are up to date
- Understand whether you have received, or are waiting for, another NHS-funded ADHD and/or Autism assessment
- Identify whether you have moved out of the area
- Make sure our waiting lists accurately reflect the people who are still waiting for an assessment from NSFT
NSFT's planned use of the beseen neurodiversity digital platform supports our waiting-list validation process, including identifying changes such as moving out of the area, accessing or waiting for another NHS-funded ADHD and/or Autism assessment, including through Right to Choose, receiving a private diagnosis, or no longer wishing to remain on the NSFT waiting list.
What will I need to do?
The questionnaire is a short waiting-list check-in. It is not another assessment.
We will ask you to confirm:
- whether you still want to remain on the NSFT waiting list; and
- whether anything important has changed since you were referred
Please answer the questions as accurately as you can. Keeping in touch with us and responding when we contact you helps us keep our information up to date and helps us ensure we can signpost you to appropriate support while you are waiting, for example ADHD and Autism Recovery College workshops.
If you need help completing the questionnaire, have difficulty using digital services, need information in another format or require a reasonable adjustment, please contact your NSFT service. We will support you to respond in another way.
Will completing the questionnaire affect my place on the waiting list?
Completing the questionnaire will enable the team to check the information you have told us and update your records accordingly.
If you have received an autism assessment or an ADHD NHS funded assessment (e.g. right to choose) elsewhere, the team will review and update your record, then discharge you as per your update.
If you have not received autism assessment or an ADHD NHS funded assessment elsewhere your position on the waiting-list will not change.
Its purpose is to make sure the information we hold is correct and confirm that you still want and are eligible for an assessment from NSFT.
If the information you share needs further clarification, the service may contact you to discuss this before any changes are made.
Keeping your information safe
The questionnaire link takes you to the secure beseen neurodiversity digital platform.
Information you provide through the questionnaire is shared securely with the relevant NHS neurodevelopmental (ADHD and/or Autism) team.
NSFT will never ask you to provide bank details or make a payment to remain on an NHS waiting list.
If something about a message or questionnaire does not look right, do not provide any information.
Access this service
What do you do if you want an ADHD assessment?
Speak to your GP, Social Worker or a health professional that knows you well.
Your existing health professional can help you to make a referral if you both agree an assessment is needed. This referral needs to highlight any specific problems/difficulties you experience relating to school/work/home life and what made you decide to seek an ADHD referral at this time.
If you have had a previous diagnosis, either from NHS or Private provider, the team will need a copy of any relevant documentation to review before they are able to accept a referral. If it is not possible to provide this then you may need to be re-assessed by our team before we can consider medication, etc.
If any of the below circumstances change, after you were initially referred for an ADHD assessment, please complete our contact form.
- I have moved to a new address
- I want to tell you about a change in my circumstances/details
- I have received a diagnosis from another provider
- I wish to be taken off the waiting list
- I want to tell you about something different or have more information to tell the team
Visiting and onsite facilities
The team work from NSFT bases in Ipswich and Bury St Edmunds, depending on whether someone comes under an East or West Suffolk GP. We offer a mix of face-to-face; video and telephone appointments and the team encourage people to contact them if there are any reasonable adjustments that are needed to support their appointments.
What this service offers
Update from Suffolk and North East Essex ICB — 16 January 2025
What this service offers
The team support people on their journey through assessment, diagnosis and treatment of ADHD in Suffolk. The team currently work as an East and West team in terms of caseloads; however, this will not impact the service that someone would receive.
The team are commissioned to offer assessment for ADHD as well as supporting people with medication if they have an ADHD diagnosis. This could be starting medication, routine annual reviews or other changes that may be required. We will usually offer monthly appointments when starting medication and once this is stable, the team will work with the GPs to support them to prescribe ADHD medication under a shared care agreement. They will then offer routine annual review appointments with the team and can be contacted for any more urgent changes in the interim.
Unfortunately, we are not able to offer formal coaching or talking therapies type approaches from within the team at this time. The team work with the NSFT Recovery college and Suffolk Wellbeing who offer specific ADHD courses as well as wider mental health interventions.
How this service support carers including friends and family
The team are happy to offer joint appointments and any other reasonable adjustments to support people to attend appointments.
If we have consent from the individual, we can share information regarding your care and we are also happy for carers, friends of family to contact the team to share any concerns or for generic advice.
Urgent help
Due to the high demand for this service, there can be a delay of some months between the referral and assessment. It is recommended that patients contact their referrers should they require support or advice during this time, and the referrer should consider this delay when planning care and support during this period.
The Service cannot assume responsibility for risk management and do not provide:
- Case management
- Emergency appointments
- On-going care co-ordination
- Crisis management
If you are a service user and are in crisis and need support urgently you can contact your service on the number which will have been provided.
Call 0808 196 3494 to speak to our 24-hour mental health crisis line called First Response.
If you are with someone who has attempted suicide, call 999 and stay with them until the ambulance arrives.
If anyone is at serious risk of harm, call 999 and ask for the police.
For non-life-threatening medical situations, call NHS111 on 111.
For more information, see Help in a Crisis.
Resources
Websites:
YouTube videos - These videos are linked to a third party provider on YouTube and have not been produced by NSFT
Access to Work:
Books:
- Taking care of your Adult ADHD (2010) R.A Barkley & CM Benton
- Delivered from Distraction: Getting the most out of life with ADHD (2017) EM Hallowell & JJ Ratey
- ADHD 2.0 New Science and Essential Strategies for Thriving with Distraction - from Childhood through Adulthood (2011). EM Hallowell & JJ Ratey
- You Mean I'm not Lazy, Stupid or Crazy? The Classic self-help book for Adults with ADHD (2006). K Kelly & P Ramundo.
- Sit Still Timmy 2023 Tim MacWilliam - Award winning memoir by a local author with late diagnosed ADHD who was helped by The NSFT Norfolk AND Waveney NHS Adult ADHD Service.