New Nova Scotia Pilot Program to Address ADHD and ASD Wait Lists
A new pilot program to increase public access to assessment and diagnosis services for children and adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been launched in Nova Scotia.
The government will contract the services of registered private psychologists to complete diagnostic assessments for ASD and ADHD for children and adolescents on public waitlists for these services through the program funded by the Office of Addictions and Mental Health. There will be no cost to families.
The province has committed $500,000 to the pilot program, which will test publicly funding private practice psychologists through a fee-for-service model. There are about 1,300 children on the wait list for autism assessment in Nova Scotia and 400 on the waitlist for ADHD.
“CADDRA welcomes all initiatives to improve access to assessment and diagnosis services for children and adolescents with ADHD.” said Dr. Joan Flood, Advocacy Committee Chair and Board Member, CADDRA. Representatives from CADDRA and Centre for ADHD Awareness, Canada (CADDAC) met with Minister Brian Comer from the Office of Addictions and Mental Health earlier this year to discuss the white paper and action plan “Creating Equitable Access to ADHD Care in Canada”.
“We welcome this new funding provided in Nova Scotia and hope that additional funding will be made available to increase treatment access and options for children and adolescents in Nova Scotia post assessment,” Dr. Flood added.