It’s thought that between 3 and 4% of the UK adult population have Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This complex disorder can cause difficulty sustaining attention, hyperactivity and impulsive behaviours.
ADHD can affect every aspect of a person’s life - and people with ADHD face long waiting lists for diagnosis and treatment. The charity ADHD Action found that a third of adults awaiting assessment had been waiting for over 13 months.
Teri Baines is a Product Manager at Chattermill, a software company in London. They are currently an apprentice, enrolled on Multiverse’s Data Fellowship programme.
“I always had a suspicion that I had ADHD for about 10 years,” Teri said, “but when I first started thinking that I just put it down to being lazy or not disciplined.
“In previous roles it was all too much. I knew I was capable of doing the work, but it was as if I was constantly being pulled away from it by other distractions, and I couldn’t escape it. There’s a battle with every single task - and it gets really tiring.
“Four years ago, my GP put me on the waiting list for an ADHD diagnosis - and I’m still on that list now. Without a diagnosis it felt hard to get the support, and I also struggled with feeling like I wouldn’t be taken seriously.”
Multiverse is committed to providing an inclusive learning environment for all apprentices that is not only free from discrimination and unfair treatment but that actively values and celebrates difference.
Part of that means providing the support necessary for learners to fully participate in their apprenticeship programmes, whether that’s through adjustments - or through supporting them to get the diagnosis and treatment they need.
This year, we have become one of the first training providers in the country to offer a full, medically recognised ADHD diagnosis service for apprentices, at no cost to the apprentice, in as little as three months.
This allows apprentices to receive all the benefits of a diagnosis, such as accessing medical treatments or therapies as needed.
Teri was one of the first apprentices to utilise the diagnosis service we facilitated.
They said: “I was chatting to my coach who asked how I was finding some of the half-day sessions. I mentioned that I struggled a bit with concentrating during those sessions and I said I thought I might have ADHD.
“My coach recommended a diagnosis service that Multiverse offered, where I could speak directly to a registered psychiatrist. That seemed so much better, cutting out all of the difficult middle men.
“From there, I was very quickly diagnosed with a very high score. As soon as I received that diagnosis I instantly felt better. I finally had choices about how to deal with this. I could choose treatment options that work for me.”
ADHD is one of the most underdiagnosed conditions in the country. Offering access to diagnostic services allows us to make a difference, while celebrating the unique strengths that people with this condition can bring to their workplaces and learning.
As Teri put it: “Getting this diagnosis and support has been legitimately life changing for me. Doing my work now - I feel so much happier, I feel a sense of achievement, I don’t feel guilty. And it’s been immediately recognised at work, it’s like I took a massive step forward which I could not have done without this diagnosis and the course of action it opened up.”
