hello everyone, so my 6 year old was finally able to be have a diagnoses done and after all of the questionnaire he was diagnosed with both high functioning autism and adhd. After doing dcm5, Conner and all the other assessments this was what i was told. Now the dr making the diagnosis is currently in Florida and I live in Connecticut so everything has been through video call and she met once with my son and we have another call next week. I am just wondering if any other families have had their child diagnosed this way and or should I give a second thought to a second opinion. This is all very new for me and I am just looking for some feedback on whether this is something acceptable being that a in person session has not been done and everything was based on those assessments.
diagnosis guidance : hello everyone, so... - CHADD's ADHD Pare...
diagnosis guidance
I understand how hard it can be to find help that is reliable and affordable. I went through several quacks, unfortunately. I found the best help through the local college. Their school psychologist program allows grad students to evaluate children and that's how I was able to get a diagnoses. This student spent 2-3 4 hour sessions with my daughter. Which makes me wary of the short amount of time the Dr spent on a video call with your son.
Then I had to find someone for treatment. Occupational therapy was not as hard to find, and they also do their own evaluation when first meeting clients. It confirmed the evaluation. Finding a psychiatrist and the right medication has been the hardest. Zocdoc was the most helpful. I did learn from a bad experience to always meet with the care providers without my daughter first, and to have my questions prepared and written down. It took more trial and error than I've ever been through with medical issues, but I have found some decent fits. Best wishes for you and your family!
Co-signing on looking at local colleges for help. We initially paid a lot of money to a private hospital for a neuropsych eval.
When we needed an updated eval, the prices were even higher. We were lucky that our local public college was opening their waiting list just as I called. We got an excellent eval and report. It took longer than the eval at the private hospital because the grad student needed to review each phase with their supervising professor, but we were very happy with the experience and the results. Their fee structure was sliding scale, so we paid 1/2 of what we paid at the private hospital 7 years prior.
Thank you both for your response, I have been wondering about second opinions as I assumed these kind of evaluations were always done in person. I am really not sure what to do at this point. She has met with him once last week and will meet again with him Tuesday. This will be our 3rd meeting as the first video call was with just her and myself and asking questions about him. The diag came from her reviewing all of the questionnaires like the dcm5 and conner and some others I can’t remember the name. She’s does reside in our state but travels south for the winter time and does televisits in the mean time
I was wondering how you meet the care provider first? I was able to get a tele visit first from one but I’m looking for a pediatrician who is skilled with ADHD and have been told the child has to be there in order to bill. This has resulted in one disaster of an appointment so far with a quack and a new one scheduled in April that I’m on the fence about
I'm so sorry! I went through a few doctors like that. I would talk to them on the phone or video chat like an online visit. If they don't understand that you want to get to know them first then I personally took that as the first sign it wasn't a good fit. If you can find online reviews or a local organization for parents who may be able to offer suggestions, that would help. I would try to find as local as possible, but I understand some areas just have less available. Truth is, her pediatrician group (she sees a nurse as her primary) is so-so but kind and supportive, her OT and former speech teachers we see weekly are who matter most. Then finding a psychiatrist (ours is also a nurse with psych qualifications) was important to be on the same page, but I see her via video chat and my daughter only needs to be present occasionally. Which is great because she doesn't know how to communicate about herself in that way and hearing me talk about her can be stressful and hard for her. Zocdoc was helpful for me.
many doctors do the questionnaires, but a few do neuropsych evaluations. Though those are more thorough and in person, the questionnaires usually lead to the same end point. My stepson was through a neuropsych test and my daughter through questionnaire.
I do recommend a gene sight test if you are concerned about side effects. Those do have to be in house. Also, if you do go the med route, you may want to get a local doctor, since some states have laws that you have to be in person seen every year. I know it would look sketchy for a doc to be prescribing from out of state if you go to stimulants too.
thank you so much for your response, this is all very new to me and I just assumed those evaluations had to be done in person. The Dr who did the diagnoses also resides in my state but she goes south for the winter and does telehealth visits until she returns in person
My son was diagnosed with ADHD via questionnaires and one video session. The doctor said my son basically checked every box on his list during that one session and he didn't need a second one, but that he would normally have scheduled a second one if needed.
We've also had him evaluated for autism twice where they have used similar methods (questionnaires and a video session) and both times it's come back negative.
This has all been through Kaiser.
my daughter had a virtual eval for autism (not adhd that was already diagnosed) and it’s recognized by her pediatrician but not by the school district so she has an in person eval set up for next month.
We are located in NYS though so things could definitely vary by state. It could also just be her district that I’ve had issues with.
PLEASE Help! I can’t be the only one who has this issue with computer screens!
Tired, frustrated and helpless 
Feeling so helpless, feels hopeless
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