Autism, ADHD and mental health review: What you need to know

GENUINELY WHAT IS HAPPENING TODAY BECAUSE SOMEONE JUST DROPPED A MASSIVE 600-PAGE REVIEW SAYING 4% OF KIDS AGED SIX TO 17 ARE DIAGNOSED WITH AUTISM BUT THAT IS WAY HIGHER THAN THE 1-2% WE THOUGHT WAS THE REAL NUMBER! THEY ARE CALLING IT A GENERATIONAL OPPORTUNITY TO FIX HOW THE NHS AND SCHOOLS DEAL WITH ADHD AND AUTISM BUT THE THING IS THE DATA THEY ARE USING TO SAY THIS IS OVER-DIAGNOSED IS LITERALLY NINE YEARS OLD WHICH IS WILD BECAUSE HOW CAN YOU BE SURE OF ANYTHING WITH ANCIENT SURVEYS? IT IS BASICALLY A TOTAL RETHINK OF WELFARE AND EMPLOYMENT POLICIES AND I AM HONESTLY JUST WORRIED ABOUT EVERYONE GETTING THE SUPPORT THEY ACTUALLY NEED WITHOUT SOME BUREAUCRAT CUTTING THEM OFF BASED ON WEAK NUMBERS. OK NOW TELL ME I AM WRONG.

TBH THIS ONE IS WILD BECAUSE WES STREETING ORDERED THIS MASSIVE HEALTH REVIEW TEN MONTHS AGO CLAIMING YOUNG PEOPLE WERE BEING WRITTEN OFF BUT NOW THEY ARE SUGGESTING THAT ADULT AND CHILD DIAGNOSES FOR THINGS LIKE ADHD MIGHT ACTUALLY BE OUTSTRIPPING WHAT SHOULD BE POSSIBLE IN THE POPULATION! THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT CHANGING EVERYTHING FROM SCHOOLS TO BENEFITS SYSTEMS BASED ON THESE CONCLUSIONS BUT THEY ADMIT THEY ARE ESTIMATING EVERYTHING BECAUSE THE LAST REAL SURVEYS ARE NEARLY A DECADE OLD. IT IS A SERIOUS SITUATION BECAUSE IF THEY USE THIS TO CHANGE POLICIES WITHOUT BETTER DATA, A LOT OF PEOPLE COULD BE LEFT IN A TOUGH SPOT AND I JUST HOPE THEY FIGURE IT OUT BEFORE THEY START MESSING WITH REAL LIVES. ANYWAY REMEMBER I TOLD YOU FIRST.

A new UK government review suggests potential over-diagnosis of autism and ADHD in young people, but notes that the underlying data used for this conclusion is outdated and requires scrutiny.

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