Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi everyone - looking for a bit of advice here.
I have been on the NHS waiting list for an ASD assessment for about 11 months (Scotland). During this time, the opportunity arose to have a free independent assessment through my university. I agreed to that, and was subsequently diagnosed ASD in October. It was based on a 3 hour interview with a clinical psychologist, and I received a 6 page report detailing her opinion, plus some signposting, e.g. details of my local autism charity.
As far as I know, I'm still sitting on the NHS waiting list. Do you think I still push for an NHS diagnosis even though I've now had an independent consultation? I'm curious if there are any differences between an independent and NHS diagnosis, e.g. in the assessment procedure, or type(s) of support offered. Also I'm not sure if my independent psychology report is valid proof should I ever want to register as disabled / claim anything, etc?
Lastly, I'd also like to know if an NHS assessment can identify a combination of conditions such as ASD, ADHD and dyspraxia. When I met the psychologist, she said there is a possibility I also have dyspraxia, but she wasn't able to make that diagnosis.
Does anyone have any thoughts or experience on this stuff? Any input would be much appreciated,
Tintal
How many pages long are your autism spectrum diagnostic reports?
Mine had a 'main report' of twenty pages. There was another three in an appendix of how I was affected in my work environment and the adjustments and understanding recommended.
The main report was about the justification for the diagnosis, linked to my 'life history' and also observations about my speech patterns, expressions, stims, sensory difficulties and so on. It made quite interesting reading for me but a lot of it I would not really want to share with anyone I knew as the information is very personal.