Adult ADHD Assessment

You will be emailed a screening pack which consists of a number of standardised questionnaires. This is to see whether enough traits are present to warrant a full diagnostic assessment. If required, we can arrange a brief telephone call or book in a one hour screening session.

Assessment is conducted in a 2 hour session. This can be at the practice in Dorset or carried out virtually. We have clinics in Dorchester, Poole and Bournemouth. We use a series of assessment tools including semi-structured clinical interviewing along with the Diagnostic Interview for ADHD in Adults Version 5 (DIVA-5). Where possible, we will gather information from a 3rd party perspective (e.g., parent, spouse, partner, sibling). This is not essential but can prove helpful for the assessment. It is important to note that we offer psychological assessment and formal diagnosis only and are not able to prescribe medication post-assessment. We do have links with private prescribers that can help with medication which we can put you in touch with following a diagnosis.

​The clinician will review all the information gathered and map that against the DSM-V diagnostic criteria. A comprehensive report will then be produced and emailed to you. The wait for the report is typically two weeks. The report will include a detailed analysis of the assessment content, a formulation, an outcome (e.g. diagnosis or no diagnosis), and tailored recommendations. If you do not meet the criteria for a formal diagnosis, there is always a formulation as to why not and what else might be going on instead (e.g., mental health condition, alternative neurodevelopmental condition).

Once you have received your report, we will arrange a time for a feedback session to explore the outcome and suggested recommendations in the report. This session can be face to face in Dorset or virtual. We can also focus on areas such as disclosure to others, education, workplace, and post-diagnostic interventions.