A “steady stream” of parents is getting in touch with ADHD Ireland in Cork with questions about the mental health of their children, some of which can be attributed to the “positive” effects of social media.
The recent changes in the management of ADHD in children in Cork and Kerry under the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) are attributed to long waiting lists and delays.
Thursday evening will see ADHD Ireland in Cork host a panel discussion with the professionals who treat children with ADHD in the area, entitled “Meet the Experts ” panel discussion.
The service development manager of ADHD Ireland in Cork, Martin Finn, said that since the Covid-19 pandemic, “the number of queries has not dropped.”
“There is the perception out there that ADHD is a fad or just in fashion, but the fact is that we simply have better tools to detect it, ” he said.
“And since COVID, you had a lot of adults who were at home then, and they saw they couldn’t work well without the office environment. Similarly, kids would have had their structures in school taken away, and without that scaffolding, they didn’t function well.”
Mr Finn added: “So there was an epidemic of patients after that.”
He said that there is now also a lot of information out there on social media platforms.
“There are informed people. There is a lot of bad information, but I think generally people who are making these videos have the condition themselves and they talk about their own experience,” he said.
Generally speaking, social media has been a good thing, and I believe that is all the reason why we are witnessing so many cases today.
The appearance of the child and adolescent psychiatrist consultant, Dr David O Driscoll, and advanced nurse practitioner Kathryn Hallahan at the event at the Metropole Hotel on Thursday evening.
ADHD Ireland in Cork stated that the clinicians are attending in a personal and professional capacity and are not representing HSE or speaking on behalf of CAMHS services.
They will be expected to speak about practical, evidence-based knowledge of ADHD, especially in children and adolescents.
