The Royal Australian College of GPs is urging the New South Wales Government to prioritise reforms to improve access to support and treatment for people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) from GPs after the mass resignation of psychiatrists.
Around 200 psychiatrists in NSW's public health system have submitted their resignations amid an ongoing pay dispute with the state government.
RACGP New South Wales Chair Dr Rebekah Hoffman said: "GPs should be able to initiate and prescribe medications for people living with ADHD, and manage their care. Allowing GPs to give more support to people living with ADHD will improve health and wellbeing for patients, cut wait times and costs, and ease pressure on the health system.
"The New South Wales workforce crisis makes these changes even more urgent. Psychiatrists have raised concerns over safety due to the state's understaffed workforce.
"We have solutions. Allowing GPs to give more support to people living with ADHD will not only help these patients, it will help ease pressure on our psychiatrist colleagues.
"The RACGP is calling for a nationally consistent approach for ADHD prescribing that helps adults and children with ADHD access appropriate and early support from their GP, including reducing regulatory barriers for prescribing stimulant medications.
"In NSW, GPs have to apply for approval in order to be able to prescribe stimulant medications, and they can only do it if they're working in rural or remote communities, or if they're practising predominantly in paediatrics.
"People in NSW face significant barriers to ADHD care – they often have to wait months and pay hundreds of dollars for psychiatrists to confirm their diagnosis and get scripts that could be easily and safely prescribed by their GP. Now the situation is even worse.
"I'm urging the NSW Government to work with the Federal Government to prioritise these reforms for people living with ADHD – GPs can help improve access and reduce costs for these patients, and in doing so ease pressure on our stretched health system.
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