Sorry if similar has been posted before but I am new to this forum and finding a little hard to navigate.
I am the parent of a child (now considered an adult, as they have reached the age of 18) who we all believe is on the autistic spectrum and has had related issues throughout their childhood, but never got diagnosed despite a referral to CAMHS as a child (due to the long delays). We have now approached the GP about the possibility of a referral for an NHS diagnosis but it seems even if we are lucky to get this waiting lists will be excessive and we would like a diagnosis before our child starts university next year (hopefully). We are therefore looking to go down the private diagnosis route.
Googling brings up quite a few results but they do not strike me as all the same in terms of the methodologies used. Is one private diagnosis as good as any other or are say some providers or types more accepted than others should we wish in the future to use the diagnosis to request further support for our child be it in university or elsewhere? Is there say some question we need to ask a provided to ensure their diagnosis could be widely recognised?
Obviously we will have a number of things to consider in selecting any private supplier for the diagnosis, not just the cos,t but the format may need to be something our child is comfortable with and we would want avoid any excessively long diagnosis so say we could get a diagnosis before the start of the university year, but my main worry is we could spend money on such a diagnosis but find the provider's diagnosis is not widely recognised.
Does anyone have any experience in such matters?
Thanks
