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Private Diagnosis - Worth The Money?

Sgt Romeo

So, I had my assessment today.  I was seen by a clinical psychologist at my local PCT's Mental Health team.

He said essentially I am toi high functioning to warrant referral to an autism specialist & that the only way I will get an official diagnosis is to go private.  I have had quotes from several psyxhologists in my area, ranging from £1,000 to £3,000.

Can anybody explain to me why there is such a disparity in fees?  Is the cheap one cheap because the psychologist is not officially recognised as being a specialist in autism?  Is the expensive one expensive because it is affiliated to the National Autistic Society?  Is it worth paying more money for a better diagnostic package ie including suggestions of reasonable adjustments that can be made at work.

Finally, has anybody been diagnosed by the Lorna Wing Centre in Bromley, Kent?  Was it worth it?

Thank you

Parents
  • Former Member
    Former Member

    I'm not sure what the distinction is between diagnosis and official diagnosis. I was diagnosed by a psychiatrist who gave me a letter stating that I should have the protection of the Equality Act. Perhaps that letter makes it "official"?

    You don't have to disclose this on job applications. I have recently moved jobs and did not say anything until after I had been offered the job. At that point they sent me a pre-employment health questionnaire and I disclosed it then. The employer sent me to see a doctor to assess whether I was fit to work and he had no reason to say that autism would be a problem. It depends on the role: if you were an airline pilot and communication difficulties could contrbute to safety issues then they could decide that you were not fit for that role. I work in IT so there are no such concerns.

    The benefit of protection from the Equality act is that it can force employers to be more considerate. Bullying is an issue for people with autism and it can change the direction of a disciplinary or performance management process if you disclose your autism. It is best to avoid such situations so there are benefits in disclosing it before problems arise. People with autism are different and harder to manage in some respects so we attract criticism which we often react against. This quickly descends into bullying and arguments. I suspect that my path to diagnosis is similar to sgt romeo in many respects as I suspect that he has got a boss that doesn't have a clue about how to manage him and he hasn't worked out a way of being managed without the grief that accompanies a typical ASD person's life.

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  • Former Member
    Former Member

    I'm not sure what the distinction is between diagnosis and official diagnosis. I was diagnosed by a psychiatrist who gave me a letter stating that I should have the protection of the Equality Act. Perhaps that letter makes it "official"?

    You don't have to disclose this on job applications. I have recently moved jobs and did not say anything until after I had been offered the job. At that point they sent me a pre-employment health questionnaire and I disclosed it then. The employer sent me to see a doctor to assess whether I was fit to work and he had no reason to say that autism would be a problem. It depends on the role: if you were an airline pilot and communication difficulties could contrbute to safety issues then they could decide that you were not fit for that role. I work in IT so there are no such concerns.

    The benefit of protection from the Equality act is that it can force employers to be more considerate. Bullying is an issue for people with autism and it can change the direction of a disciplinary or performance management process if you disclose your autism. It is best to avoid such situations so there are benefits in disclosing it before problems arise. People with autism are different and harder to manage in some respects so we attract criticism which we often react against. This quickly descends into bullying and arguments. I suspect that my path to diagnosis is similar to sgt romeo in many respects as I suspect that he has got a boss that doesn't have a clue about how to manage him and he hasn't worked out a way of being managed without the grief that accompanies a typical ASD person's life.

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