I’m in this weeks Georgia Straight a Vancouver based weekly newspaper along with Dr. Margaret Weiss ex BC ADHD clinic chief commenting on the $3 million dollar BC children and adult ADHD clinic donation scandal. Matt Burrows wrote the story. We need an inquiry into this scandal.

See my previous post medical bureaucrats at BC Children’s Hospital & PHSA botch multimillion dollar donation for desperately needed BC Adult & Children’s ADHD clinic. Vancouver Sun health reporter Pamela Fayerman broke this story, her follow up story here.

It’s scandalous that desperate ADHD adults and parents of children with ADHD can’t find people properly trained in diagnosing ADHD in BC. Of the few who are trained in diagnosing and medically treating ADHD,  many do not even have wait lists, and those who do often have very long wait lists.

Don James, the Harley Davidson CEO who has a family member with ADHD,  for 3 years generously tried to give a $3 million donation for an BC adult and childrens lifecycle ADHD clinic to the medical bureaucrats at:

BC Children’s Hospital

The Provincial Health Services Authority PHSA

BC Mental Health Foundation

Although there was initial interest, no one got back to him with a plan or promise to use the money, he said

For 3 YEARS!!! How often in the health system is someone offering you a $3 million donation for a badly needed service? He tries to do the right thing, and that’s how he was treated?

I have people email me every DAY asking for a some name of people who can diagnose ADHD in the Vancouver area, and outside that? Even worse. BC is very backwards on ADHD. I’ve lost track of how many horror stories that have been told to me by adults with ADHD who couldn’t get diagnosed or their doctor didn’t bother to do so or dismissed the possibility of them having ADHD.

And they had access to the money all the time to HELP those people for 3 YEARS but never used it? Disgraceful. Shameful.

I’ve called for an inquiry into this scandal. Dr. Margaret Weiss has agreed.

“I definitely think that there should be an inquiry, because this is not the only instance in which a major donation has not been accepted by the health authority,” Weiss claimed in a phone interview. “And so, given the extreme budgetary constraints on provision of medical services, the fact that they are turning down much-needed money in areas of care that are particular gaps in our system needs to be investigated.”

Matt Burrows of the Georgia Straight for Health minister Mike De Jong comment on the scandal and was told Mike de Jong was “out of the country” and would not be able to respond. Really? No phone or email available in 2012? Where was he? On an arctic ice floe?

The BC Liberal govt closed down the only public adult ADHD clinic in BC 5 years ago after having a politically embarrassing 12-14 month wait list for an entire year. Still closed. I asked then NDP health critic Adrian Dix‘s (now BC NDP leader) office if they’d do something about it, but just got a lot of empty promises and nothing in the end.

There needs to be more than one public clinic for adults and children with ADHD in BC, but we can at least start with one.

The proposed BC adult and children’s lifecycle ADHD clinic seems to be in limbo now. I’ve been told Lion’s Gate Hospital in North Vancouver has been given the money it but it’s not clear if it’s going ahead.

Why hasn’t health minister Mike De Jong done something about this? What will he do about this badly botched multimillion dollar donation?

If you think this is wrong and there should be an inquiry about this, please contact these people and ask for one.

Also ask when they will reopen the much need BC adult ADHD clinic.

Contact BC Health Minister Mike De Jong Email mike.dejong.mla@leg.bc.ca Phone: 250 953-3547

Contact BC NDP health critic Mike Farnsworth mike.farnworth.mla@leg.bc.ca 250 387-3655

Contact the BC Conservative party conservatives@bcconservative.ca Toll Free:1+866-800-9025

The CEO of Deeley Harley Davidson Canada, Don James has been trying to give a 3 million dollar donation for a desperately needed children and adult BC ADHD clinic. For 3 years. Incompetent BC medical bureaucrats have ignored him. Repeatedly.

This is disgraceful.

Pamela Fayerman, the Vancouver Sun’s medical reporter wrote an excellent investigative story on this. Check out her Blog Medicine Matters, Twitter  Facebook. But unfortunately, her 1675 word investigative story complete with a staff photographer photograph that looks like it’s written for the print edition is posted instead in her blog, not the print edition.

Why? Was it spiked? Blog spiked? It’s a great story. Did it offend the powers that be at the Vancouver Sun? Their connected friends or organizations? Vancouver Sun managing editor Harold Munro apparently made the decision. Please ask Harold why an excellent story like this is not in the print edition? Here’s his email address hmunro@vancouversun.com ADHD gets ignored or stigmatized in BC far too much.

Don James, CEO of Deeley Harley Davidson Canada explains why he offered the generous donation for a much needed BC adult and children’s ADHD clinic.

We’ve had some experience with ADHD in our family,” he said. “My wife Ruth, and I, wanted to ensure that children treated there aren’t suddenly dropped as patients when they transition to adulthood,” he said, noting that in 2009, a B.C. Medical Association report drew attention to the need for more services for ADHD patients of all ages.

I wish there were more people like Don James in BC.

James approached various mental health experts at the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA), the BC Mental Health Foundation as well as experts at BC Children’s Hospital. Although there was initial interest, no one got back to him with a plan or promise to use the money, he said.

This is disgraceful.

As an Adult ADHD coach who runs the Vancouver Adult ADD Support group, I get people emailing me on a daily basis, asking for people who can diagnose ADHD in children and especially in adults. I’ve heard far too many horror stories by people who suffered because they didn’t get diagnosed and treated for ADHD.

Many BCers wait months on wait lists to get diagnosed for ADHD IF they can find someone who is actually knows ADHD well enough to give a proper diagnosis. Most medical professionals in BC have no training in ADHD. UBC medical students only get one hour of training on ADHD.

Don James says

If they weren’t interested in our donation, they should have had more respect by referring us elsewhere because we weren’t talking about an insignificant amount of money. We weren’t given the straight goods.

People were protecting their turf and not thinking about all the patients out there who aren’t getting proper treatment. We were handled in an incompetent, unprofessional manner

So adults and children with ADHD in BC who are severely lacking in resources for diagnosis and treatment HAD someone out there willing to fund the services they so desperately needed but didn’t get them because incompetent medical bureaucrats decided fighting ego turf wars was more important than helping ADHD patients?

Or did they just have contempt for people with ADHD? I know people who work in the mental health field who’ve went public at work with their ADHD and experienced discrimination by doctors and psychiatrists because of it.

Dr. Jana Davidson, a psychiatrist and head of mental health at BC Children’s and Women’s Hospital and Health Centre, admitted that, as one of those tasked with handling the pledge, she dropped the ball and left James and his wife dangling for three years.

“I feel badly. These were incredibly generous, well-meaning people, intent on trying to improve services for those living with the negative effects of ADHD. “The responsibility fell on my shoulders. I should have done a better job, especially in the formal communication with them,” Davidson said.

The BC Liberal govt closed down the only public adult ADHD clinic in BC 5 years ago after having a politically embarrassing 12-14 month wait list for an entire year. Still closed. I asked then NDP health critic Adrian Dix‘s (now BC NDP leader) office if they’d do something about it, but just got a lot of empty promises and nothing in the end.

Why hasn’t health minister Mike De Jong done something about this? What will he do about this badly botched multimillion dollar donation? Email mike.dejong.mla@leg.bc.ca Phone: 250 953-3547

I asked BC Premier Christy Clark at her town hall meeting 8 months ago if she would reopen the BC Adult ADHD clinic the BC Liberals closed. Her answer is on my blog post with the audio, she said “I’m Absolutely Committed To Working With You On It”. CKNW and CBC did a story on it. But nothing’s happened.

“James said he made several overtures to experts, including Leslie Arnold, president of BC Mental Health and Addictions Services, a PHSA (Provincial Health Services Authority) agency that has a mandate for ADHD services based at Children’s Hospital.

When James first approached BC Children’s in 2008, the hospital was about to stop accepting adult patients because waiting lists were too long. Even after dropping adult patients, waiting lists for pediatric patients — and their parents who may be taught new parenting skills —are still long. At present, new patients must wait five months to be seen. ”

James said he’s incredulous he’s only recently learned more about the dithering on his pledge. And he’s especially disturbed he discovered about it through a Vancouver Sun journalist (this writer), not from hospital officials.

“No one ever told us they couldn’t use our money or why. We offered money and they simply ignored us.”

Dr. Margaret Weiss head of the BC ADHD clinic, and world renowned authority on ADHD resigned in part over this. She’s worked there for 20 years. This is a big loss.

The Don James donation debacle played a role in the resignation from BC Children’s Hospital of Dr. Margaret Weiss, one of the world’s leading authorities on ADHD. Weiss had practised psychiatry at the hospital for 20 years and had led the ADHD program for about the last half of them until she left a few months ago. The McGill and Harvard University-educated psychiatrist is now seeing ADHD patients and conducting research in her North Shore home office.

She’s one of the world’s most prolific authors of ADHD studies published in prestigious medical journals. She also advises health systems around the world how to provide ADHD treatment programs. Weiss said the diversion of the James donation, coupled with the BCCH policy to stop accepting patients after their 19th birthday, was devastating news to her and her patients. It was one of the reasons she resigned, she said

If you ever wanted to do something about getting back an adult ADHD clinic in BC now’s the time.

“Someone else should do it” rarely really happens in real life. Many non ADHD people don’t even think ADHD is real let alone care about us.

People with ADHD don’t get services in part because far too often many in the media, the govt, and the medical bureaucrats don’t think it’s real, or a real problem. If we want services, we need to tell them why we need them.

Here are a few ways you can help:

Please read the story and pass it on to people you know who might be interested in it and facebook/twitter, consider commenting on Pamela’s blog post or writing a letter to the editor, if you do, ask them why the article is not in the print edition of the Vancouver Sun.

Please call your MLA and demand they reopen the BC adult ADHD clinic and ask them to do an inquiry on why a much needed $3 million dollar donation for BC adult and children’s ADHD clinic got ignored for 3 years.

Here’s how to find your MLA’s contact info

Also please consider politely (cursing gets deleted) explaining to these people why adults and children with ADHD need a BC adult and children clinic. If they don’t think we need resources they won’t give us it. Lots of other groups want the limited resources.

If the PHSA Provincial Health Services Authority won’t help adults and children with ADHD, they should give the resources to VCH Vancouver Coastal Health Authority to do so

1. Lynda Cranston, President and CEO of the PHSA. Provincial Health Services Authority lcranston@phsa.ca

2. Lorna Howes, Director of Mental Health Services for VCH. Vancouver Coastal Health Authority  lorna.howes@vch.ca

3. Mike De Jong. Minister of Health. Email mike.dejong.mla@leg.bc.ca Phone: 250 953-3547

4. Mike Farnworth BC NDP’s Health critic. Email  Mike.Farnworth.MLA@leg.bc.ca
Phone: 250 387-3655

Other ideas?

I went to the town hall meeting that BC Liberal Premier and Point Grey riding by-election MLA candidate Christy Clark had last Friday at St. Mark’s Church in Kitsilano, Vancouver.

I asked Premier Christy Clark a question about re opening the BC adult ADHD clinic at an adult hospital that the BC Liberal govt closed down in 2007 after it had a 12-14 month wait list for an entire year.

8% of kids and 5% of adults have ADHD so there are more adults with ADHD than children, and most don’t know they have it and many doctors have NO training on ADHD. UBC medical students only get 1 hour of training on ADHD. I get emails DAILY asking for names of people who can diagnose ADHD in adults & kids.

I would like to see the BC adult ADHD clinic opened at an adult hospital vs BC Childrens hospital, for obvious reasons plus an Adult Attention Deficit Disorder clinic will be more politically vulnerable to cuts or closure at a Children’s hospital. See this PDF on the Economic Costs of Ignoring ADHD by Dr. Margaret Weiss of the BC Children’s ADHD clinic

Here are my posts on the closure of the BC Adult ADHD clinic.

Adults with ADHD abandoned as clinic closes doors

1 year wait list for a full year for adult ADHD diagnosis embarrassing? Solution? Close down the clinic

Pete’s Global TV interview on “overwhelming popular” BC Adult ADHD Clinic closing doors to new adult patients

I told Christy Clark that 21-45% of criminals in jail have ADHD 15 clinical studies show. The UK screens all prisoners for ADHD, but we don’t.

I mentioned 20-30% of drug addicts have ADHD, but think I forget to mention tobacco is the #1 drug people with ADHD self medicate with. I said that the BC Liberal govt shut down the BC adult ADHD clinic after a 1 year wait list of an entire year. I then asked if she would commit to re opening the BC adult ADHD clinic?

I didn’t capture all of her response but she did say

“I don’t have enough information about the specifics of the program that you’re talking about, but I’m absolutely committed to working with you on it.”

She then talked about having an IEP for every kid in school and more about kids and education not specifically ADHD. I then mentioned that in BC if your child has ADHD and doesn’t have a learning disability or severe behaviour problem they’re not entitled to any accommodations. They might get some; it’s totally at the whim of the teacher but no legislation requiring any.

CKNW radio ran a 48 second clip on my question and Christy Clark’s response on the sat 11am news until the 3pm news including her saying the above quote I’m embedding the audio here, used with permission.

Audio of BC Premier Christy Clark answering my question on re opening the BC adult ADHD clinic on CKNW AM news may 11 2011

BC Premier Christy Clark answering Pete Quily’s ? on re opening the BC adult ADHD clinic May 11 2011 by ADDCoach4U

They also put a story on it on their website.

Calls for Clark to re-open ADHD clinic
VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980)
Mike Bothwell
5/7/2011

“A B.C. group is lobbying new Premier Christy Clark to re-open a clinic that was closed by Gordon Campbell last year.

Pete Quily told Clark at a public meeting this weekend that more must be done to fight the devastating effects of ADHD.

“20-45% of prisoners have ADHD versus 5% of the population. The same thing with drugs… 20-30% of addicts have ADHD Would you commit to re-opening the B.C. ADHD clinic that your predecessor closed?”

The Premier told Quily she was not aware of the details of the program that diagnoses ADHD in adults.

She did not rule out the possibility of re-opening the clinic.

Also On Sunday morning CBC Radio One News also covered it during their newscast one of the members of my Vancouver adult ADD support group told me. Nothing on their website though, but here’s the copy of the story.

A BC group that supports adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or, has hope that a clinic could be re-opened after a talk with the premier.

Peter Quily, with the Vancouver Adult ADHD support group, confronted Christy Clark at a public meeting and asked her to restore funding the Liberal government cut, forcing the clinic to close.

Quily says the impact of ADHD is devastating, noting 20 to 45 per cent of prisoners have the disorder.

He also told Clark that schools could do a lot more to diagnose the problem earlier, but only those with learning disabilities or behaviour problems are singled out for testing

While I’m glad CBC covered the story, for the record, I didn’t “confront” Christy, just asked her a question during Q and A session at microphones like others, and did so politely. They also misquoted the 2nd part of my piece. I said that in BC if your child has ADHD and doesn’t have a learning disability or severe behaviour problem they’re not entitled to any accommodations. They might get some; it’s totally at the whim of the teacher but no legislation requiring any.

Christy Clark mentioned publicly to another questioner that her family had problems with alcohol, that her Dad was an alcoholic. Good that she had the guts to say that, one reason why people don’t seek treatment is because the shame and stigma is so severe. Seemed half or more of the questions were about mental health or addictions.

Christy Clark said her #1 health priority was brain based disease (ie alzheimers) #2 mental health. “We have to do a lot more for that”. I agree. Re opening the BC adult ADHD clinic at an adult hospital and implementing the BC Medical Association’s 8 policy recommendations on ADHD in their white paper on ADHD would be a good start.

Let your MLA or opposition party candidate know about this, and ask them if they will support reopening the BC adult ADHD clinic at an adult hospital.

Tell they why they should do it. Use your/family members story or tell them about this PDF on the Economic Costs of Ignoring ADHD by Dr. Margaret Weiss of the BC Children’s ADHD clinic

Use the BC MLA finder to contact your MLA

Let Christy Clark know what you feel about this

Contact the NDP

Contact the BC Conservative Party

Monday April 14th I went to see Michael Ignatieff at the Vancouver Alpine Club. I asked Michael a question about ADHD & crime during the Q & A period, I think I was the 3rd questioner “Do you knew that 20-45% of prisoners have ADHD 15 clinical studies show? And only 5% of adults have ADHD? The UK screens prisoners for ADHD in their jails, would you commit to screening prisoners in Federal jails for ADHD?”

I’m asking politicians this question for several reasons but one of them is most people don’t care at all about people with ADHD or think it’s overdiagnosed/space alien/drug company conspiracy/ not beating up your kid enough etc. But they do care about crime.

After the rally was over I decided to ask some of the Liberal politicians there if they would commit to screening prisoners in Federal jails for ADHD.

I asked Vancouver Kingsway Liberal Candidate Wendy Yuan ” The UK screens prisoners for ADHD in their jails, would you commit to screening prisoners in Federal jails for ADHD?” Wendy Yuan answered “Yes I would”.

I thanked Liberal candidate Wendy Yuan and handed her a copy of my blog post on 15 peer reviewed studies on ADHD and crime Up To 45% 0f Prisoners Have ADHD Studies Show. Crime & Jail Are Costly, Treatment Is Cheap

So thank you Wendy Yuan for choosing science and evidence over ideology and theology in regards to ADHD and crime. I hope other Canadian politicians do the same.

20-30% + of drug addicts and alcoholics have ADHD peer reviewed clinical studies show but properly managed ADHD can be a competitive edge. Many entrepreneurs have ADHD. See the top ten advantages of ADHD in a high tech career

Nearly 20 years ago in Seattle, Judge David Admire son got diagnosed for ADHD and he noticed many people in his 2-3 year court seemed to have ADHD. He developed a screening program for prisoners with ADHD and learning disabilities. If they screened positive, they got properly diagnosed and had a choice of getting treatment for ADHD and or LD, learning how to properly manage ADHD with skills, pills, how to self advocate etc or going to jail. The ones who got treated for ADHD had their recidivism (return to prison) rates  go down massively compared to controls.

Vancouver’s mental health court last time I asked didn’t bother screening for ADHD. Too bad.

Health is mainly a provincial responsibility in Canada, but the Federal govt is responsible for jails. So if you or someone you know has ADHD why don’t you ask your local candidate or their party leader if they have a chance if they support screening prisoners in Canadian Federal prisons for ADHD?

Maybe also ask them if they’ll properly diagnosing those who screen positive by people who know ADHD and treat them in jail not only with long term medications that can’t be abused like the short term ones but more importantly also therapy so they learn self awareness and skill so they don’t come back to jail at a cost of $101,000 a year to the Canadian taxpayer?

Ideally you want them to screen children and adults for ADHD BEFORE they end up in jail, get medical professionals trained on ADHD in kids and adults and do a national anti stigma/ ADHD facts campaign. But Canadian provincial politicians don’t seem to want to do that.

If you’re Canadian here’s how to find your local candidate to ask them about ADHD & crime:

Find your local Liberal candidate

Find your local NDP candidate

Find your local Conservative candidate

Find your local Green candidate

Follow the Canadian Federal election on Twitter with the hash tag #elxn41 up until the election May 2nd 2011. Vote or you can’t complain until the next election.

Monday April 14th I went to see Michael Ignatieff at the Vancouver Alpine Club. I asked Michael a question about ADHD & crime during the Q & A period, I think I was the 3rd questioner “Do you knew that 20-45% of prisoners have ADHD 15 clinical studies show? And only 5% of adults have ADHD? The UK screens prisoners for ADHD in their jails, would you commit to screening prisoners in Federal jails for ADHD?”

I’m asking politicians this question for several reasons but one of them is most people don’t care at all about people with ADHD or think it’s overdiagnosed/space alien/drug company conspiracy/ not beating up your kid enough etc. But they do care about crime.

After the rally was over I decided to ask some of the Liberal politicians there if they would commit to screening prisoners in Federal jails for ADHD.

I asked Vancouver Center Liberal MP Hedy Fry (on Twitter @HedyFry Election website TeamHedyFry ) ” The UK screens prisoners for ADHD in their jails, would you commit to screening prisoners in Federal jails for ADHD?” Hedy Fry answered “Yes I would”.

She knew about the connection between ADHD and crime. Hedy Fry was a family doctor and president of the Vancouver and British Columbia Medical Associations. But many doctors in BC & Canada have no training on ADHD and currently UBC medical students only get one hour on ADHD during their program.

Also most politicians I talk to about this have no clue about the massive disproportionate number of prisoners in Canadian jails who have ADHD. So it’s nice to talk to someone who knows about ADHD and crime. I thanked her and handed her a copy of my blog post on 15 peer reviewed studies on ADHD and crime Up To 45% 0f Prisoners Have ADHD Studies Show. Crime & Jail Are Costly, Treatment Is Cheap

So thank you Hedy Fry for choosing science and evidence over ideology and theology in regards to ADHD and crime. I hope other Canadian politicians do the same.

20-30% + of drug addicts and alcoholics have ADHD peer reviewed clinical studies show but properly managed ADHD can be a competitive edge. Many entrepreneurs have ADHD. See the top ten advantages of ADHD in a high tech career

Nearly 20 years ago in Seattle, Judge David Admire son got diagnosed for ADHD and he noticed many people in his 2-3 year court seemed to have ADHD. He developed a screening program for prisoners with ADHD and learning disabilities. If they screened positive, they got properly diagnosed and had a choice of getting treatment for ADHD and or LD, learning how to properly manage ADHD with skills, pills, how to self advocate etc or going to jail. The ones who got treated for ADHD had their recidivism (return to prison) rates  go down massively compared to controls.

Vancouver’s mental health court last time I asked didn’t bother screening for ADHD. Too bad.

Health is mainly a provincial responsibility in Canada, but the Federal govt is responsible for jails. So if you or someone you know has ADHD why don’t you ask your local candidate or their party leader if they have a chance if they support screening prisoners in Canadian Federal prisons for ADHD?

Maybe also ask them if they’ll properly diagnosing those who screen positive by people who know ADHD and treat them in jail not only with long term medications that can’t be abused like the short term ones but more importantly also therapy so they learn self awareness and skill so they don’t come back to jail at a cost of $101,000 a year to the Canadian taxpayer?

Ideally you want them to screen children and adults for ADHD BEFORE they end up in jail, get medical professionals trained on ADHD in kids and adults and do a national anti stigma/ ADHD facts campaign. But Canadian provincial politicians don’t seem to want to do that.

If you’re Canadian here’s how to find your local candidate to ask them about ADHD & crime:

Find your local Liberal candidate

Find your local NDP candidate

Find your local Conservative candidate

Find your local Green candidate

Follow the Canadian Federal election on Twitter with the hash tag #elxn41 up until the election May 2nd 2011. Vote or you can’t complain until the next election.

Last saturday shortly after I tweeted about Vancouver South Liberal MP and past BC Premier & Attorney General  Ujjal Dosanjh‘s (on Twitter @ujjaldosanjh ) signs been destroyed or defaced on Twitter,

RT @pqpolitics 35+ of Liberal Dosanjh’s large 4 by 4 signs have gone missing + another 25 have been defaced & damaged http://bit.ly/dZgmJc #elxn41 #bcpoli

I was going down 41st ave and noticed Vancouver Quadra Liberal MP Joyce Murry signs were knocked down. Soon, I noticed some of Vancouver South Liberal MP Ujjal Dosanjh’s signs trashed or defaced, one coincidentaly within 2 blocks of his tory opponent Wai Young’s campaign HQ. I went to the Fraser area & later wandered past Ujjal Dosanjh’s HQ. So I walked in to tell them about their trashed signs.

After telling a volunteer about their trashed signs (a few could be random vandals, but not 35) I saw Vancouver South Liberal MP Ujjal Dosanjh in the office. So naturally I asked him this question

“Do you knew that 20-45% of prisoners have ADHD 15 clinical studies show? And only 5% of adults have ADHD?”

Surprisingly, he was aware of the connection between ADHD and crime. BC is very backward on ADHD especially adult ADHD. I then asked him “The UK screens prisoners for ADHD in their jails, would you commit to screening prisoners in Federal jails for ADHD?” He answered “Yes I would”. Ujjal then went on to say that they should be screened for ADHD in the court system before they even reach prison.

I totally agree. Judge David Admire did this nearly 20 years ago in his 2-3 year court in Seattle. His son had ADHD & he noticed many people in his court seemed to have ADHD. He developed a screening program for prisoners with ADHD and learning disabilities. If they screened positive, they got properly diagnosed and had a choice of getting treatment for ADHD and or LD, learning how to properly manage ADHD with skills, pills, how to self advocate etc or going to jail. The ones who got treated for ADHD had their recidivism (return to prison) rates go down massively compared to controls.

20-30% + of drug addicts and alcoholics have ADHD peer reviewed clinical studies show but properly managed ADHD can be a competitive edge. Many entrepreneurs have ADHD. See the top ten advantages of ADHD in a high tech career

Vancouver’s mental health court last time I asked didn’t bother screening for ADHD. Too bad.

I was very pleasantly surprised Ujjal Dosanjh knew about ADHD and crime since most politicians I talk to about this have no clue about the massive disproportionate number of prisoners in Canadian jails who have ADHD. I thanked him and told him about my blog post on 15 peer reviewed studies on ADHD and crime Up To 45% 0f Prisoners Have ADHD Studies Show. Crime & Jail Are Costly, Treatment Is Cheap

So thank you Ujjal Dosanjh for choosing science and evidence over ideology and theology in regards to ADHD and crime. I hope other Canadian politicians do the same.

Health is mainly a provincial responsibility in Canada, but the Federal govt is responsible for jails. So if you or someone you know has ADHD why don’t you ask your local candidate or their party leader if they have a chance if they support screening prisoners in Canadian Federal prisons for ADHD?

Maybe also ask them if they’ll properly diagnosing those who screen positive by people who know ADHD and treat them in jail not only with long term medications that can’t be abused like the short term ones but more importantly also therapy so they learn self awareness and skill so they don’t come back to jail at a cost of $101,000 a year to the Canadian taxpayer?

Ideally you want them to screen children and adults for ADHD BEFORE they end up in jail, get medical professionals trained on ADHD in kids and adults and do a national anti stigma/ ADHD facts campaign. But Canadian provincial politicians don’t seem to want to do that.

If you’re Canadian here’s how to find your local candidate to ask them about ADHD & crime:

Find your local Liberal candidate

Find your local NDP candidate

Find your local Conservative candidate

Find your local Green candidate

Follow the Canadian Federal election on Twitter with the hash tag #elxn41 up until the election May 2nd 2011. Vote or you can’t complain until the next election.

Yesterday I went to two leaders rallies in Vancouver, Michael Ignatieff’s in North Vancouver and Elizabeth May’s in Vancouver

At the Green party rally that started at 7.30pm in front of the train station in Vancouver I asked Elizabeth May who’s @elizabethmay on Twitter

“Do you knew that 20-45% of prisoners have ADHD?”  Only 5% of adults have ADHD. She said a lot of prisoners have ADHD and other mental health problems. I then said “The UK screens prisoners for ADHD in their jails, would you commit to screening prisoners in Federal jails for ADHD?” She answered “Of course”

I was very pleasantly surprised since most politicians I talk about this have no clue about the massive disproportionate number of prisoners in Canadian jails who have ADHD. I thanked her and gave her a printed copy of my blog post on 15 peer reviewed studies on ADHD and crime Up To 45% 0f Prisoners Have ADHD Studies Show. Crime & Jail Are Costly, Treatment Is Cheap

So thank you Elizabeth May for choosing science and evidence over ideology and theology in regards to ADHD and crime. I hope other leaders do the same.

I got a chance to give my blog post on 15 peer reviewed studies on ADHD and crime to Michael Ignatieff who’s @m_ignatieff on Twitter, as he passed on the way out but unfortunately didn’t have a chance to ask him if he’d screen prisoners in Federal jails for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

Health is mainly a provincial responsibility but the Federal govt is responsible for jails. So if you or someone you know has ADHD why don’t you ask your local candidate or their party leader if they have a chance if they support screening prisoners in Canadian Federal prisons for ADHD and also properly diagnosing those who screen positive by people who know ADHD and treat them in jail not only with long term medications that can’t be abused like the short term ones but also therapy so they learn self awareness and skill so they don’t come back to jail at a cost of $101,000 a year to the Canadian taxpayer?

Ideally you want them to screen children and adults for ADHD BEFORE they end up in jail, get medical professionals trained on ADHD in kids and adults and do a national anti stigma/ ADHD facts campaign.

If you’re Canadian here’s how to find your local candidate to ask them about ADHD & crime:

Find your local Liberal candidate

Find your local NDP candidate

Find your local Conservative candidate

Find your local Green candidate

Follow the Canadian Federal election on Twitter with the hash tag #elxn41

I co moderated the Mental Health And Social Media #MHSM Twitter chat with Valerie Casselton @Valcasselton the executive editor of the Vancouver Sun newspaper last Tuesday November 23rd. The topic was how to effectively respond to media stories on mental health. I’m @petequily on Twitter

The Mental Health And Social Media #MHSM chat happens every Tuesday from 6pm to 7pm PST and was started byAmy Kiel  @Abeeliever on twitter who blogs at Una Vita Bella. I’d encourage people on twitter to check out the #mhsm chats, I find them very useful.

You can check it out by searching for the #mhsm hashtag on twitter

I enjoyed it though it was quite busy trying to keep up with 360+ tweets in an hour. Thanks to Valerie Casselton for helping out with the chat from the perspective of a newspaper editor and for the Vancouver Sun digital life reporter @gillanshaw who blogs at Digital Life for helping to arrange it.

Here are some of the tweets (not all, and missing the retweets) I’ve captured from the chat. It’s in reverse order going from last tweet to first tweet.

petequily: Nice to see #mhsm Mental Health & Social Media chat trending in #Vancouver http://trendsmap.com/local/ca/vancouver #mentalhealth

EatsShootsEdits: social media also needs to understand that Journalism has certain rules that must be used to tell a story. #mhsm

bluefinch604: @petequily Could send out a tweet stating that they wish to write about X mental health condition. Ppl may be brave & come forward. #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: @petequily Reporters and editors can do google searches for bloggers in the area. thy can use twitter as a research tool as well #mhsm

walkforwarriors: RT @PTSDConference: an effective way to respond to stories is to offer expert input based on experience/facts #mhsm

valcasselton: @EatsShootsEdits #mhsm Great! Always looking. Reporters, editors are part of your community and really care about these issues.

EatsShootsEdits: @KristinaJarvis trad media looks down at social media and social media thinks trad media is outdated. little crossover #mhsm

HealthWorksBC: INDEED! RT @CreativeFusion: Mental health commiss showed some of greatest stigma w/in health care system itself. http://bit.ly/g0JPtH

valcasselton: @petequily #mhsm. All stories have reporters’ contact info at the end. e-mail them. Send a tweet. Call them. Call the newsroom, an editor…

bluefinch604: @EatsShootsEdits One would need to be brave, to come forward with their story. Some won’t take the risk. #mhsm

HealthWorksBC: TY.Got to go & hope a few will join our hlthcare SM Canada chat this Thur #hcsmca 6pm Pacific1hr/3topics incl person centred health sm #mhsm

bluefinch604: @EatsShootsEdits I wish TV would rely less on sensationalism and I hope print keeps informing. #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: I feel if traditional media looks into the MH social media scene they just might find some good stories. #mhsm

KristinaJarvis: @stephintoronto Negativity is understandable – it can be frustrating to deal with & try to get pos. attn. #mhsm

SuperADDMom: #mhsm print media stating symptoms of #adhd for example that describe mainly boys at 7 yo, does nothing to educate public.

petequily: @stephintoronto no #stigma on high blood pressure many can diagnose & treat it. I get emails daily asking where #adhd diagnosis in bc #mhsm

dnmiyoshi: @stephintoronto Maybe not, but ur friends with high b.p. would probably think nothing of taking their medication right in front of u #mhsm

SuperADDMom: #mhsm articles still use old info when researching, females r UNDER dxed for #adhd and even #autism, considered a boy’s issue. not the case
about 1 hour ago via web · Reply · View Tweet

HealthWorksBC: as a MH leader w MH my emplyr of 18 yr was less supportive than expected. Healthcare does a poor job of taking good care of it’s “own” #mhsm

valcasselton: @stephintoronto #mhsm. Identify media, editors & reporters who do stories on MH that you like. Then contact them with your stories. Connect.

EatsShootsEdits: @KristinaJarvis TV like the sensationalism, the shock and fear value, print likes to educate, inform #mhsm

stephintoronto: cont to tell my story verbally,in print through blog,twitter,writing,at Group sessions,using it to help myself and others w MH issues #mhsm

CreativeFusion: @mrchriswagner Important to have editorial meetings w/ top staff w/ trusted members of mental health community to effect change. #mhsm

KristinaJarvis: I once had a boss threaten me with a pink slip, then later said it was to get me out of my “funk” #mhsm

SuperADDMom: #mhsm the local Ontario newspaper articles don’t help with the #adhd stigma

petequily: The BC adult ADHD clinic at childrens had year waitlist. asked govt for $ govt shut it down. still closed http://bit.ly/37dqmy  #mhsm

SuperADDMom: #mhsm ppl in my life know about it, and i tell those i meet new in my community as I strive to become known artist, ppl are so unaware

KristinaJarvis: The point I am trying to make, esp. to journos, is that the upper level needs understanding and it starts with staff #mhsm

SuperADDMom: #mhsm I’m very vocal about #adhd, #autism, neurological mental health issues on twitter, facebook, blog, and in my life, i OWN my ADHD.

HealthWorksBC: many of us have person. exp w MH self incl, dare i say we’re preaching to the choir. How about who’s not here & should be 4 future? #mhsm

mrchriswagner: I think we all have an oppty 2 take something negative & make it a positive, make it abt hope & make the media get it #mhsm

petequily: @EatsShootsEdits that happens w/ #ADHD too can take many months to see someone who knows ADHD UBC med schools stds get 1 hour on ADHD #mhsm

CreativeFusion: @KristinaJarvis Knew someone who used to smash furniture in psych hospital ER just so he would get help. He committed suicide. #mhsm

mrchriswagner: @CreativeFusion I think the bottom ranks of the media are mostly on side, it’s the subeditors and chiefs that need ‘training’ #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: @KristinaJarvis I am a Journo with multiple Mental Illnesses #mhsm

petequily: @PTSDConference yes I did that on the Vancouver YMCA #ADHD #stigma ad by blogging & tweeting it + offline see http://bit.ly/hZs1ZZ  #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: @petequily Pete you are right, education is key and for us to find ways to get media to educate “With” us. #mhsm

KristinaJarvis: In #ab we’ve had suicidal people get no help at ER, one killed himself at ER. Where was the story about the desperation of his act? #mhsm

ReachOutinUSA: @CreativeFusion Exactly. The angle is key, relating to the patients perspective is most easily facilitated by bottom-up media IMO #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: I have fallen thru the cracks of BCs MH system. Why should a Bipolar 1 person have to wait 6 to 12 months to find a P-Doc #mhsm

stephintoronto: i think that again we r back to the basics of these chats. the need for education,de-stigmatization,awareness&understanding #mhsm

petequily: To deal w/ #ADHD catch 22 I’ve been doing a series of blog posts what would it take you to go public with ADHD? http://bit.ly/fpZenW  #mhsm

SuperADDMom: #mhsm if we can’t get medical society to deal with MH without stigma, can we expect media to?

petequily: @HealthWorksBC and to make it worse people w/ #ADHD have 3-5 times higher rates of eating disorders #mhsm

mrchriswagner: @EatsShootsEdits agreed, you never hear ‘cancer patient escapes hospital’ or ‘man with broken leg escapes hospital’ do you #mhsm

@HealthWorksBC: Stigma x 10: a male w eating disorder. men seeking help & admitting a problem is a huge step but much society is not there yet. #mhsm

CreativeFusion: @petequily Magazines often cover these issues better & some papers, but has to be right reporter w/ right intent & angle. #mhsm

HealthWorksBC: IDEALLY MH discussion should be occurring as part of daily conversation everywhere, kitchen table, w friends & not be a media topic #mhsm

stephintoronto: Press calls agencies for quotes,info. They need to know that you are open. #mhsm

SuperADDMom: #mhsm i find as a mom with “cyclothymia” & ADHD on my medical record, my CHILDREN’S mental health is not addressed because I’m the advocate

valcasselton: #mhsm If it’s new, if it has human interest, if someone is willing to be interviewed, we’ve got a story. Need all three.

mrchriswagner: @petequily stigma is everyone’s problem, keeps us all in the dark, but stigma and bigotry sells papers unfortunately #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: because you never hear, “Driver in accident texted seemed to be a idiot” #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: also reporters need to stop throwing in “Possibly Mentally Ill” or “Subject seemed Psychotic” this adds to MH stigma #mhsm

stephintoronto: i know that many of us would stand up & speak up for the cause, so where do I sign up is part of the challenge? #mhsm

CreativeFusion: @ReachOutinUSA True…have had great success interviewing people for CAMH CrossCurrents. But they know it will be dealt w/sensitively. #mhsm

petequily: @CreativeFusion but people w/ #ADHD rarely complain to media / govt b/c stigma is so strong. Catch 22 #mhsm

mrchriswagner: @EatsShootsEdits You are correct, also #mh doesn’t make good pictures, which is what TV needs, so often #mh gets zero coverage #mhsm

ReachOutinUSA: @CreativeFusion this is true, re consumers (h8 that word) but if u can find some spokespeople, you need to be careful and nurturing #mhsm

KristinaJarvis: #mhsm better in-depth stories about the effects of mental illness, better explanation of what mental illness does to people.

HealthWorksBC: Stigma x 10: a male w eating disorder. men seeking help & admitting a problem is a huge step but much society is not there yet. #mhsm

petequily: @CreativeFusion Absolutely. One of the biggest problems with #ADHD is the stigma. Media & govt often doesn’t take ADHD seriously #mhsm

mrchriswagner: @CreativeFusion It’s not bad here, sometimes tho, the guidelines scare the media out of reporting on #mh and #suicide #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: @valcasselton TV news treats MH far more like a side show than print. TV is about the fear, sensationalism #mhsm

mrchriswagner: @CreativeFusion this is true, re consumers (h8 that word) but if you can find some spokespeople, you need to be careful and nurturing #mhsm

stephintoronto: Maybe we need to assign a mental illness to each month and just bombard them with stories? hee hee #ADHDAugust? #DepressionDeccember? #mhsm

valcasselton: @EatsShootsEdits One a month?! Vancouver Sun had 26 stories on MH in the past month. #mhsm

mrchriswagner: #mhsm, often tho, the issue comes when a sensational story, like the Oz twin #suicide in the US, happens, and the rules go out the window

stephintoronto: @EatsShootsEdits think maybe the spectrum of “mental health” is so large that it is even hard to have these talks sometimes #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: I agree it is hard to get people to speak openly in a public forum about their mental illness #mhsm

mrchriswagner: #mhsm Hey everyone, sorry for the delay in jumping in, in Oz, we have guidelines for the media, courts, police etc http://bit.ly/9ACQWT

EatsShootsEdits: one of the issues I faced as a producer was take depression, the spectrum is so wide it was hard to focus a story #mhsm

HealthWorksBC: RT @stephintoronto: i think recog obj of the reporter & the need for a story as well as the obj of sensitivity&truthfulness #mhsm

CreativeFusion: @Colleen_Young @EatsShootsEdits Often reporters want to talk to people with mh issues; hard to find due to stigma. #mhsm

petequily: @BCMentalHealth I think the #ItGetsBetter campaign is brilliant. Would like to see something like that on #ADHD #mhsm

HealthWorksBC: Goals/Risks: knowledge of facts/range, uniqueness, & impact of story on others, need to reduce stigma vs adding to stigma #mhsm

stephintoronto: i think recognizing the obj of the reporter & the need for a story as well as the obj of sensitivity&truthfulness about #Mentalhealth #mhsm

valcasselton: @petequily Counterproductive? Not timely. Not relevant. Issues that are so specific they don’t speak to a broad number of people. #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: reporters need to understand that patients get very little voice in the public conversation about MH and MH care. #mhsm

BCMentalHealth: Do you think the media is taking the right steps with regard to the #ItGetsBetter campaign? #mhsm

PTSDConference: if u find a story or blog post u believe is counter productive or wrong, respond w/ ur own post & link to other info #mhsm

stephintoronto: i think counter productivity arrises from anger to the story, where the real sentiment might have been sadness/hurt not vocalized well #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: question, what can we do to better help the media tell our story? #mhsm
about 2 hours ago via TweetChat · Reply · View Tweet

petequily: @KristinaJarvis what things do you think reporters & editors could do to get more non surface stories on #mentalhealth ? #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: @BCMentalHealth links for help, moderated chat, possible web counseling via skype for people not comfortable leaving the house #mhsm

BCMentalHealth: if you were to build an online support group for people with mental illness what things would you like to see it have? #mhsm

petequily: @valcasselton what are some ways that people have tried to respond to media on #mentalhealth isssue that don’t work/counterproductive? #mhsm

HealthWorksBC: My TIPS: get the facts right, treat w dignity, not generalize, HELP others find resources by listing at least 1 in each story #mhsm

PTSDConference: another effective way to respond to stories is to build your own story via social media #mhsm

stephintoronto: it is like any health issue.if there isn’t a crisis or a specific month/week dedicated to the cause it won’t make the pages #mhsm

PTSDConference: an effective way to respond to stories is to offer expert input based on experience/facts #mhsm

petequily: RT @valcasselton: #mhsm Lots of ways to respond to media re. mental health stories. Letters to editor, calls to reporters & editors, ideas for follow stories.

EatsShootsEdits: i feel print media should have one MH story a month in the health & lifestyle section #mhsm

KristinaJarvis: #mhsm As a reporter with mental illness, I still feel we in media don’t really scratch the surface of coverage.

petequily: Web-savvy Mounties save suicidal man at UBC http://bit.ly/eeLI7g  #mhsm via @gillianshaw

EatsShootsEdits: @valcasselton i agree, but we must as editors be open to relationships in the MH community #mhsm

HealthWorksBC: i’ve asked rprters 2 de-sensationalize stories to be more sensitive & walk in shoes of those they are writing about.they did x3 so far #mhsm

stephintoronto: i have responded to issues/articles in the paper that i feel don’t properly represent #bipolar #depression.try to bring a real voice #mhsm

valcasselton: #mhsm Lots of ways to respond to media re. mental health stories. Letters to editor, calls to reporters & editors, ideas for follow stories.

EatsShootsEdits: editor and was interviewed myself to stop using MH fear as a news leader #mhsm

PTSDConference: certainly there’ve been tons of stories on #PTSD lately. hav leveraged them several times to forge relationships #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: I responded to a story whereas a reporter was using scary people with MH to sensationalize a story. I responded with a letter to the #mhsm

HealthWorksBC: as a former ldr of mental health MOST of my experiences w reporters concerning awaren. of MH were sensitive when goals/risks undrstood #mhsm

petequily: Also what are some examples where you’ve responded to media story on #mental health & had a bad result or no result? possible causes? #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: There should be stronger relationships between news editors and the MH community in order to bring honest relevant issues public #mhsm

HealthWorksBC: when sharing facts & exper about males w eating disorders. fact chking w reporters, person w illness & time helped #mhsm #hcsmca #mhsm
about 3 hours ago via TweetChat · Reply · View Tweet

stephintoronto: it’s a tough topic. i have used media stories to open the conversation with family and friends about #mentalhealth #mhsm

EatsShootsEdits: I know from working in TV news , different than print. MH stories are usually linked to tragic events & not organic MH stories #mhsm

petequily: What are some examples where you’ve responded to a media story on #mental health and had a good result? What were causes? #mhsm

petequily: we won’t be doing ?1 ?2 etc just general ? and comments focusing on effective AND non effective ways to respond to media MH stories #mhsm

petequily: @ValCasselton won’t be able to respond to specific media stories but will do her best respond to your ?s #mhsm

petequily: @ValCasselton graciously offered to help out with her perspective at the last minute #mhsm

petequily: I’ll be co moderating the #mhsm chat with Vancouver Sun Executive Editor @ValCasselton who’s on deadline so will be in & out of chat

petequily: Welcome to #mhsm ! tonights topic how to effectively respond to media stories on #mentalhealth vs just vent

BCMentalHealth: Looking forward to the Mental Health & Social Media chat #mhsm about to start

petequily: #ADHD Is Essentially Invisible To Those Who Don’t Have It, Need A Major PR Campaign To Take Away The Stigma http://bit.ly/eAkPmW  #mhsm

CADDRA Canadian ADHD Resource Alliance annual ADHD conference The Many Faces of ADHD: A Window into the Future will be in Vancouver BC, November 20-21st.

I previously attended CADDRA’s  2004 ADHD Vancouver conference and found it very informative and useful. Here are my two blog posts about CADDRA’s Vancouver ADHD conference

The 2010 CADDRA ADHD conference is designed for professionals who deal with ADHD, not consumers ie not for the general public.

Target Audience: Paediatricians, Psychiatrists, Psychologists, Family Physicians, Social Workers, trainees and other professionals.

As an Adult ADHD coach who runs the Vancouver Adult ADD Support Group, I get people contacting me on a regular basis looking for someone who knows enough to diagnose ADHD or to do the medical part of ADHD treatment. Far too few doctors, psychologists and psychiatrists have been trained in ADHD, especially here in BC.

So if your doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist tells you they don’t know enough about ADHD to diagnose or treat you, tell them about this conference so they can learn.

BC is very backwards on ADHD

• ADHD is 80% genetic so there are more adults with ADHD than Children. The BC Children’s ADHD clinic added on an adult clinic and soon had a one year wait list for an entire year. The asked the govt for funding to reduce the wait list, and the BC Liberal (actual neoconservatives) govt closed the adult ADHD clinic. The opposition BC NDP did and said nothing absolutely nothing about this despite several conversations about it.

• Students at UBC medical school in Vancouver only get one hour of training on ADHD.

• CADDAC’s recent 2010 Provincial Report Card: ADHD in the School System showed that BC was in the bottom 3 provinces in dealing with ADHD, Alberta, Newfoundland & Saskatchewan were in the top 3.

The CADDRA Conference is approved for accreditation criteria by the following organizations:

The College of Family Physicians of Canada
Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.
The American Medical Association Physician’s Recognition Award
The Canadian Psychological Association

Conference Overview: This year’s conference will feature topics dealing with the less frequently presented faces of ADHD: ADHD in girls and women and preschoolers; patients with brain injury; those involved with forensic; and several different manifestations of ADHD and mood and rage disorders. Research on long-term outcomes and the latest information on ADHD within the DSM-V will be covered. Treating Adult ADHD and ADHD and learning will also be threads through the conference. There will be a variety of formats, plenaries, workshops and also “Meet the Expert” sessions where you can discuss your cases.

An introductory non-accredited ADHD workshop on adult ADHD and on ADHD medications will be offered to attendees Friday evening free of charge.

Here are the topics that will be covered at the ADHD Conference

• ADHD and Bipolar: What Should You Know? Why Should You Care?
• ADHD From Adolescence to Adulthood
• ADHD in the DSM-V
• ADHD in the Forensic Setting
• ADHD Post-Secondary Education: Implications for Clinical Practice
• Brain Injury, TBI and Secondary ADHD
• Group Therapy as a Treatment Modality for Adults with ADHD
• Longitudinal Course of ADHD into Adulthood
• Managing ADHD and Bipolar Disorder
• Managing ADHD and Depression
• Managing ADHD with Comorbid Mood Disorder: a clinical workshop
• Managing Complex Adult ADHD
• Medication Management of ADHD and Various Comorbidities
• Optimizing Treatment Adherence
• Preschool ADHD Psychopharmacology
• Problem Solving Parenting in Office Situations
• Rages and Mania
• The ABC’s of ADHD Medication
• The ABC’s of Adult ADHD
• The History of Stimulant Medication as a Psychiatric Treatment Modality
• Treating Adult ADHD in the Primary Care Setting
• Women and Girls with ADHD: the saints, sinners and scholars…true lives
• Working Memory and ADHD: Assessment and Interventions

Register online for the CADDRA ADHD conference here

Here are the speakers at the Conference

Featured Speakers:

• Laurence Greenhill, M.D., Ruane Professor of  Clinical Psychiatry,  New York State Psychiatric Institute
• Gabrielle Carlson M.D. Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics; Director, Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Stony Brook University School of Medicine, Stony Brook, New York
• Rachel Gittelman Klein, Ph.D. Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY
• Rosemary Tannock, Ph.D. Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Special Education and Adaptive Technology, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education and the Toronto Hospital for Sick Children
• Stephen Hotz, Ph.D., Adjunct Professor, Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine, University of Ottawa
• Margaret Weiss, M.D. Ph.D., Director of Research Division of Child Psychiatry, Director Provincial ADHD Program, Children and Women’s Health Centre

Workshop and Consultation Speakers

• Geraldine Farrelly M.D.,Developmental and Behavioural Paediatrician, Clinical Associate Professor Paediatrics and Psychology, University of Calgary, AB
• Martin Gignac M.D., Child Psychiatrist, Institut Philippe Pinel; Clinical Assistant Professor, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC
• Lily Hechtman M.D., Professor, Psychiatry and Pediatrics, McGill University, Montreal, QC
• Umesh Jain M.D., Staff Psychiatrist, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto
• Laurence Jerome, M.B., Adjunct Professor, Psychiatry, The University of Western Ontario, London, ON
• Michael Joschko Ph.D., Adjunct Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Victoria, Victoria, B.C.
• Diane McIntosh M.D.,  Clinical Assistant Professor, Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC
• Candice Murray Ph.D., Children’s and Women’s Health Centre of B.C, Vancouver, B.C.
• Joseph Sadek, M.D. Assistant Professor, Psychiatry, Dalhousie University, Halifax, N.S.
• Derryck Smith M.D., Clinical Professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC
• Annick Vincent M.D., Centre Médical l’Hêtrière, Clinique FOCUS, Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures, Québec, QC

Register online for the CADDRA ADHD conference here

The Vancouver Sun celebrated ADHD Awareness week by stigmatizing ADHD on it’s front page, & sharing it Canada wide via the Canwest 2.0 / PostMedia News network.

Update 2: The Vancouver Sun actually ran a story on the same study nearly a month earlier, August 18th with the title One million children may be misdiagnosed with ADHD: Study.

Vancouver Sun 1st article on Elder ADHD Study on August 18th, 2010

They ran it as a news piece without the 3 comments by people who do not diagnose ADHD in children and are not ADHD experts. So please explain to me why a story The Vancouver Sun (a daily newspaper) covered on August 18th 2010 was also their front lead news story on Sept 13th 2010?

Update:

See: The 2 blog posts Vancouver Psychologist Dr. Jim Roche who diagnoses ADHD and works with ADHD children has written on the Vancouver Sun ADHD stigma article.

1. Vancouver Sun doesn’t get the point about ADHD Diagnosis and Treatment

2.ADHD: Science-Based Medicine and Psychology

Monday Sept 13th 2010 was the 1st day of the 7th annual ADHD Awareness week in the US. Sadly, Canada, which is quite backward in understanding and dealing with ADHD, has yet to have a 1st one. BC is more backwards on ADHD than some other provinces like Alberta, Ontario and Quebec.

The Vancouver Sun has done some great articles on depression and biploar in the past. That’s one reason why it was so disappointing on the 1st day of ADHD Awareness week to read their front page lead article stigmatizing ADHD and promoting myths about ADHD instead of exposing the stigma and myths about ADHD. Their Sept 13th A1 headline by reporter Tracy Sherlock was

“One in five hyperactive children possibly misdiagnosed, report finds”

I’m an adult ADHD coach who has ADHD and I don’t have a problem with the actual findings of the study, which talks about children who are younger than their peers in classes being more likely to be misdiagnosed with ADHD. When you consider that ADHD is often considered a developmental delay, and that ADHD isn’t taken seriously enough by the government, healthcare system and the media let alone the general public (for example the BC govt closed the only public Adult ADHD clinic after it had an politically embarassing 1 year wait list ) and that many doctors are unfortunately not provided with proper training on diagnosing and treating ADHD, it was not that surprising for those of us who know ADHD. You can see the full study in PDF format here

It’s the rest of the Vancouver Sun article that’s the problem. Worse, it got picked up by PostMedia News (Canwest 2.0) so they promoted ignorance and stigma about ADHD across Canada in outlets like the Vancouver Province, Victoria Times Colonist, Edmonton Journal, Ottawa Citizen, Montréal Gazette, Global TV, etc.

Too bad the Vancouver Sun didn’t do a more responsible, non stigmatizing article on the diagnosing ADHD in children study like the one The National Post (a sister PostMediaNews paper) did 3 weeks earlier written by a doctor that actually diagnoses ADHD in children, Dr. Yoel Abells.

This post has 3 sections

1. Six Problems with the Vancouver Sun’s coverage of the ADHD story (there are more but I’ll limit it to six).

2. Some thoughts on the implication of the study.

3. Some possible actions you can take at the end of this post.

Here are 6 problems with the Vancouver Sun’s coverage

1. It’s OLD news for a daily newspaper.

Nearly a month old. Yet, it was published as a front page lead story in a “daily” newspaper. It ran in Macleans and many other print media sites on August 17th vs Vancouver Sun’s September 13th.

2. The article mentions a study on diagnosing ADHD in children, quotes 3 local people in the article and NONE of them:

1. Actually diagnose ADHD in children or adults.

2. Are recognized experts in ADHD.

Would the Vancouver Sun do an article on diagnosing liver disease and quote 3 locals on it and not have at least one of them someone who actually diagnoses liver disease? How did this slip by the editors? Or was it a deliberate decision to slant the story from the beginning to stigmatize people with ADHD and use them as bait for more readers?

3. The only quote highlighted is a stigmatizing quote demonstrating ignorance of ADHD

This is the only pull quote in the text that’s been bolded to draw attention to it

There is no blood test for ADHD — it’s very subjective and this study makes that very clear,” MacDonald said. “I’ve long suspected that our attitude toward rambunctious behaviour influences whether we perceive that children have ADHD. Barry MacDonald

Where do I begin?

Barry Mcdonald is a RCC, registered clinical counselor, not a psychologist. RCC’s don’t diagnose ADHD.

“There’s no blood test for ADHD”

Of course there’s no blood test for ADHD. There’s no blood test for depression or schizophrenia either. Does that invalidate/minimize/trivialize/stigmatize the diagnosis of depression or schizophrenia?

There are NO blood tests for ANY mental health condition. That’s the most basic point of diagnosing ANY mental health condition. Why doesn’t the Vancouver Sun reporter Tracy Sherlock or any of her editors know this? No one expects them to be experts on every medical condition, but surely shouldn’t there be some baseline knowledge? In an editor at least, if not a reporter?

It was the lead front page story. Shouldn’t there be at least a few editors around with a very basic understanding of physical and mental health conditions? Especially when you see how many editors there on the Vancouver Sun’s contact page?

Does the Vancouver Sun need someone like Psychiatrist Dr. Margaret Weiss, head of the BC ADHD clinic to come in to educate the Vancouver Sun staff on some basic factual knowledge on ADHD and other mental health conditions?

If you want to learn what’s involved in diagnosing ADHD, or let your doctor know, the CADDRA (Canadian ADHD Resource Alliance) Canadian ADHD Practice Guidelines will tell you. CADDAC, CHADD Canada, TotallyADD and my 130 page ADHD resource website are some other good Canadian websites on ADHD.

The second part of the quote, “I’ve long suspected that our attitude toward rambunctious behaviour influences whether we perceive that children have ADHD.” is another common myth used to stigmatize ADHD, i.e. the old “it’s not really ADHD, its just boys being boys/active”, or “Only people who have massively off the chart behavior problems have ADHD, there’s too many boys being boys diagnosed with it” BS meme. The subtext is trying to push the it’s not a real condition/ only extreme off the chart cases are ADHD, etc. There’s a huge difference between believing something and having a solid clinical diagnosis by someone who really understands ADHD. Trouble is not enough doctors do.

Why does the Vancouver Sun decide to highlight one paragraph, this one? Why highlight ignorance and stigma? Shouldn’t the job of a newspaper be to expose ignorance and correct ignorance and stigma? Versus make it most prominent part of the story and syndicate it nationwide?

4. Study Author Todd Elder also talks about the under diagnosis of ADHD in the study that the media ignored.

Although recent headlines from his research have focused on the possibility that nearly 1 million children in the U.S. may have been misdiagnosed with ADHD, Elder tells WebMD that there may also be a substantial amount of under diagnosis among older kids.

but Vancouver Sun also ignores that. Wonder why? Doesn’t fit their biased narrative?

ADHD is misdiagnosed, overdiagnosed and underdiagnosed. Underdiagnosis is the biggest problem, especially in adults, and ignorance & stigma against ADHD is one of the reasons for this. This will continue to happen until people start demanding medical schools and the BC College of physicians and surgeons starts properly training doctors and psychiatrists on ADHD. Maybe start by contacting your local BC MLA or or contact BC’s Minister of Health Services Kevin Falcon

5. ADHD is not just Hyperactive

Headline is “One in five hyperactive children possibly misdiagnosed, report finds”. Not all children with ADHD are hyperactive, many girls, and some boys have the inattentive form of ADHD, AND often don’t get diagnosed because people aren’t aware of it. That’s why the actual report and other media used the term ADHD.

6. Most obvious question ignored.

Wouldn’t an obvious question from the study be: given the findings, are BC doctors, psychiatrists and psychologist adequately trained enough in ADHD to be able to properly diagnose and treat ADHD in children? Let alone adults, given there are more adults with ADHD than children, since ADHD is 80% genetic (fathers usually stay in denial longer than mothers) How come that question is never asked? Would it harm the biased narrative?

Go to the end of this post if you want some ideas on responding to the Vancouver Sun and Post Media New’s ignorance and stigmatization of ADHD

Implications of the study

If the study is indeed accurate and SOME medical professionals are overdiagnosing younger children and underdiagnosing older children in those numbers or even near that, it should be a wake up call to the public, the healthcare system, and the media. Too bad the media is sleeping through the alarm clock.

BC Parents shouldn’t have their child diagnosed with ADHD when they don’t have it or not diagnosed with ADHD when they do have it.

BC doctors, psychiatrists and psychologists are NOT adequately trained on ADHD; this is what many of them have told me. Many of them have said they weren’t trained on ADHD during medical school. There ARE some people like Dr. Margaret Weiss of the BC ADHD Clinic at Children’s Hospital and Dr. Gabor Mate who has ADHD and wrote a book on it, Scattered Minds who are world-class experts in ADHD here in Vancouver, but they learned about ADHD on their own.

UBC medical students only get one hour of training on ADHD during their entire program.

Is that enough to diagnose and treat a complex condition like ADHD where there are many co-existing condition with it, and they’re the norm, not the exception? If not what is being done to change that?

One reason the media keeps stigmatizing ADHD is not only the lack of properly trained medical professionals who know ADHD, but many people with ADHD don’t go public with the condition because of the ignorance and stigma surrounding ADHD, which the Vancouver Sun and PostMedia News (Canwest 2.0) perpetuates.

I’ve done an anonymous survey for adults who’ve been diagnosed with ADHD and haven’t gone public asking them what it would take for them to go public.

Of course not everyone should and there are many dangers and benefits to doing this and it should not be done impulsivly. I’ve got 100+ answers so far, some amazing powerful stories, and am working on analyzing it for a media release and a series of blog posts.

But some of the common answers I’ve found from my survey was that when they talked to their families, friends and medical professionals about having ADHD, they often were told ADHD isn’t a real condition. They also had families, friends, and medical professionals insulting, shaming, and stigmatizing ADHD and them for having it.

Here’s one quote from part of one person’s answer.

I am very careful about revealing to people about having ADHD. In conversations, they would say things like “Oh ADHD does not exist” or “it is just laziness.” Someone said “everyone has it these days.” When I hear people mention things like this, I just decide not to reveal anything to them. My mother still yells at me and tells me that I am just being lazy and disorganized on purpose.

What can you do about this?

1. Contact these people and politely tell them your thoughts about their Sept 13th front page lead article stigmatizing ADHD.

Patricia Graham, Editor-in-Chief, Vancouver Sun
Phone: 604-605-2318 pgraham@vancouversun.com

Kirk LaPointe, Managing Editor, Vancouver Sun
Phone: 604-605-2033 klapointe@vancouversun.com

Alex Beer, Editor-in-Chief Postmedia New
Phone: 289-396-2066 abeer@canwest.com

or the editor of the local paper that approved and syndicated this article

2. Share your thoughts about this article on twitter, facebook, your blog, or email it to others that might be interested in it.

3. Express your thoughts in the comment section of this blog post

4. Ask the Vancouver Sun and PostMedia News to do an article on ADHD that dispels the myths and stigma surrounding ADHD instead of promoting them. Perhaps by interviewing people who actually know ADHD well enough to properly diagnose ADHD and people who actually have expertise in ADHD

5. Contact your local BC MLA or or contact BC’s Minister of Health Services Kevin Falcon and ask them why aren’t they making sure BC’s Doctors, Psychiatrists and Psychologists are properly trained on diagnosing and treating ADHD in children and adults? BC Parents shouldn’t have their child diagnosed with ADHD when they don’t have it or not diagnosed with ADHD when they do have it.

6. Other ideas?