‘You’re 18 now, goodbye’: the experiences of young people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder of the transition from child to adult services

ABSTRACT

The term ‘transition’ is used to refer to the process of moving from child to adult services. Among child and adolescent mental health services attenders, young people with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are less likely to transition successfully, but there is a gap in understanding their views and why they might disengage from services. The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of transition of young people with ADHD in Southwest England using semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis. Seven young people aged 17–19 years participated. Four key themes were identified: professionals’ roles and relationships with young people; the role of ADHD medication, uncertainties around transition and medication management, and identified needs and increasing independence. Although this study presents the experiences of a small number of people, their stories suggest that best practice around transition is not always being followed. There is consequently a need to better understand the facilitators and barriers to best practice implementation.

KEYWORDS:

• Transition
• ADHD
• services
• young people

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded as part of a Doctoral Research Fellowship from the National Institute for Health Research held by Tamsin Newlove-Delgado(Reference: DRF-2012-05-221). Tamsin Newlove-Delgado is currently funded by an NIHR Academic Clinical Lectureship. Ken Stein is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care (CLAHRC) for the South West Peninsula at Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust. This report is independent research and the views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NHS, the National Institute for Health Research or the Department of Health.

Notes on contributors

Tamsin Newlove-Delgado

Tamsin Newlove-Delgado is an Academic Clinical Lecturer at the University of Exeter Medical School and an Honorary Consultant in Public Health Medicine. Having spent time training in child psychiatry as well as public health, Tamsin’s main area of research interest is in child public mental health and the transition from child to adult services.

Tamsin J. Ford

Tamsin Ford is Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Exeter Medical School. The group of researchers that she leads studies the effectiveness of services and interventions to support the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people, with an increasing focus on schools.

Ken Stein

Ken Stein is Professor in Public Health and the Deputy Director of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care for the South West Peninsula (PenCLAHRC).

Ruth Garside

Ruth Garside is Senior Lecturer in Evidence Synthesis at the European Centre for Environment and Human Health at the University of Exeter Medical School, with a particular interest in methods of synthesis for qualitative research.