The BBC has published a statement in reaction to the current Panorama broadcast, which viewers claimed’stigmatised’ persons with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
The series, which aired on Monday, May 15, investigated three private clinics that provide ADHD tests and treatment.
Although he has been chastised online for lying about his symptoms, undercover journalist Rory Carson insists that he was displaying indications of the disease when he sought to get medically examined for it.
As a consequence, the private clinics, Harley Psychiatrists, ADHD Direct, and ADHD 360 all gave him a prescription for ADHD medicine.
However, after a more in-depth evaluation with the NHS, Carson was determined to be ADHD-free.
People with ADHD may appear restless, have difficulty concentrating, and act on impulse.
The whole “it’s become too easy to get an ADHD diagnosis” thing is weird should it be hard to get a medical diagnosis? Should we have to do one of those inflatable on water obstacle courses first? You have to fight another neurodivergent person to the death to win the title?
— Mollie Goodfellow (@hansmollman) May 15, 2023
Carson stated that he was truthful with the private clinics and the NHS while they were evaluating him.
Several viewers described the study as ‘annoying,’ implying that the video skipped past the lengthy waiting lines that many individuals encounter when seeking a diagnosis.
‘The BBC “investigation” into ADHD is really annoying,’ one person fumed.
‘More people are getting diagnosed with ADHD because there is a growing awareness that adult ADHD exists and its symptoms are different to ADHD in children. Therefore, more people who have it can finally get the right diagnosis.’
Addressing the backlash, the BBC wrote in a statement: ‘The programme explains from the outset that our investigation was prompted by an email from a mother who was worried about the way her daughter had been diagnosed by a private clinic.
imagine a documentary that centred the lengths families have had to go to to fund private diagnoses & treatment for *real* experiences of ADHD because of lengthy waiting lists, or a doc charting what happens when someone has to wait a year+ for help.
— Sophia Smith Galer (@sophiasgaler) May 15, 2023
‘Panorama then spoke to dozens of patients and members of staff at private ADHD clinics, who confirmed many of the allegations made in the original email. They told the programme that people were being diagnosed following rushed and inadequate assessments, and that almost everyone who paid for an assessment at a private clinic was being diagnosed with ADHD.
‘There was, therefore, a risk that people were being misdiagnosed and given inappropriate treatment.’
The broadcaster concluded: ‘Panorama’s research uncovered serious failings by some private clinics and we believe there was a clear public interest in broadcasting the findings.’
Panorama: Private ADHD Clinics Exposed is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
