Adults face many barriers to ADHD diagnosis in B.C., advocates and patients say

As a mother of two young children, it was the many challenges of parenthood that made Kiri Vanderwel suspect she may haveattention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

She found it difficultto jugglehousehold tasks andsometimes struggled to regulateher emotions.

"I saw other mothers operate with more ease in that area and I just found certain things challenging," Vanderwel said.

But when she looked into getting a diagnosis through public health care, she learned it could take up to two years.

"That's actually two years too long."

B.C.'s only public clinic that specializes in adult ADHD has a wait of 1.5 to two years for an initial assessment.

The HOpe Centre, atLions Gate Hospital in North Vancouver, serves peopleaged 19 to 35 in the Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) region.

And the wait list has been closed since July 2021.

Vanderwelpaid $300 for a private assessment, which took less than two months.

"I recognize that $300 isn't something that everyone has accessible to them," she said, adding how grateful she was that she could afford it.

Since being diagnosed and prescribed medication, Vanderwel's life has changed.

"I can approach the same overwhelming circumstances with a lot less overwhelm. I'm able to sift through my thoughts," she said.

'Resources have not kept pace'

ADHD is a chronic neurodevelopmental disorder that can make people hyperactive, inattentiveor a combination of the two, and itaffects approximately 5 to 9 per centof children and 3 to 5 per centof adults, according to the Centre for ADHD Awareness Canada.

Demand for appointments at the HOpe Centre has been increasing ever since it opened in 2016,VCHtold CBCin an emailed statement thisweek.

The health authority decided to temporarily close the wait list in the summer"to focus resources on those currently on the clinic's wait list."

"Given physician shortages in Canada, and the specialist nature of care this clinic provides, resources have not kept pace with the heightened demand for care," according to the statement.

Adult ADHD coach and advocate Pete Quily saidwhile physicianscan technically diagnose and treat ADHD,most doctors in B.C. are not trainedin medical school to do so.

For the people Quilycoaches, the biggest barrier to getting a diagnosisis finding a knowledgeable doctor.

"They can't find anyone who knows enough about ADHD to give them a diagnosis ... who isn't going to stigmatize them for seeking a diagnosis," Quily said.

For 19 years, Quily has maintained a list of practitioners known to diagnose and treat ADHD in Metro Vancouver, where he's based.

Currently there is one doctor and three psychiatrists on his list. There are also about 15 psychologists, who can perform assessments but can't prescribe medication.

Quily said these few practitioners can be difficult to book or costly, with a private diagnosis from a psychologist costing up to $3,000 in some cases.

According to Quily, it can be even harder to find a diagnosis outside of Metro Vancouver. He said there are no public adult ADHD clinics in B.C.'s other four health regions.

"Ifyou're in Interior [Health], you're in Fraser [Health], you're in Northern [Health], you're screwed. You get nothing," said Quily.

He said the province needs to put more funding into resources for adults with ADHD and ensure doctors in the province are equipped to diagnose and treat the disorder.

B.C.'s Ministry of Health saidthe HOpe Centre received 1,067 referralsbetween 2016and 2021.

"VCH is actively recruiting additional specialist psychiatry resource and is assessing a more sustainable model for the delivery of ADHD care in the region," a spokesperson for the ministry said thisweek.

'You're not alone'

Vanderwelsaid her diagnosis has opened her eyes to how many other women, mothers, and adults in general have the same diagnosis.

"Things that I assumed to be just the way that I did things are actually shared by a subset of the population, and I was so grateful to not feel alone inside of that," she said.

Vanderwel hopes speaking outwill encourage other adultswho suspect they may have ADHDto seek out information and help.

"If you have feelings of overwhelm, you're not alone."