Nearly all states have introduced or announced plans for GP ADHD prescription and diagnosis, with the potential for a national approach coming into focus.
The ACT government will now allow GPs to now diagnose and prescribe for ADHD, following up on state election promises from 2024, as GPs in other states make a renewed push for prescribing rights.
ADHD care has been especially topical following the federal election, with the latest Health Ministers Meeting discussing the possibility of a nationally consistent approach.
The ministers agreed to pursue a “national harmonisation” of ADHD prescribing to improve patient care, affordability and access to diagnosis.
In line with this, the RACGP noted that the ACT legislation will be near identical to NSW.
“What we’d really like to see is for ACT just to replicate what New South Wales is doing and across the same timeline, so that it’s really streamlined for anyone across both jurisdictions,” RACGP NSW and ACT chair Dr Rebekah Hoffman told The Medical Republic.
“It’s tricky because, state by state, they’re based on each of their different legislations around scheduling, so there’ll still be an element where each jurisdiction will need to pass separate legislation.
“I would absolutely prefer that there was a nationally consistent approach so … GPs travelling from one state to another with work wouldn’t need to undergo any additional training or credentialing.
“But also for patients so that, irrespective of where they live, they have a solid understanding of what their options are for management.”
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On Monday, both the Tasmanian and Victorian branches of the RACGP issued calls for GP-led ADHD diagnosis and management in their respective states.
As GPs expand their scope into ADHD prescribing, RACGP Victoria chair Dr Anita Munoz called for greater collaboration between general practice and psychiatry.
“I think what the ADHD story has told us is that if there is collaboration with GPs and psychiatrists, we can have more people treated because there is greater case sharing between the two specialties,” Dr Munoz told TMR.
“They can be successfully engaged, but it needs to be equitable.
“We also need there to be capacity building in the public sector, so that psychiatrists in the public sector are doing some of this work, and this shared care model can be utilised more.
“That requires some in investment in the systems and investing in remunerating the time that the two specialties would take in order to collaborate effectively.”
A national approach has also been suggested as a potential method to address ADHD medicine shortages.
“We can really see if it moves to a national approach, where we would be allowed to convert within safe dosing ranges of equivalent medications, or convert from slow release to immediate release without needing that extra step,” RACGP Tasmania deputy chair Dr Tim Jones told TMR.
“It would enable much smoother care of the prescribing side to our patients.”
