Firdale Medical Centre will refer patients under the NHS Right to Choose pathway to an appropriate ADHD assessment service.
However, we must also be clear that our practice does not enter into shared care agreements with private providers, including those delivering services under the Right to Choose pathway. This decision is based on clinical governance and patient safety considerations. Shared care requires robust local protocols, agreed prescribing responsibilities, and direct lines of communication with NHS secondary care services, which are not in place with these providers. Without these safeguards, we cannot safely assume prescribing responsibility.
This position is consistent with national guidance: while patients do have the right to choose their provider for assessment, GP practices are not contractually obliged to take on shared prescribing unless there is a locally commissioned and clinically supported arrangement. In such cases, the ongoing prescribing of medication remains the responsibility of the initiating provider unless a safe and agreed shared care arrangement is in place.
If you do proceed with an assessment and treatment through a Right to Choose provider, your prescribing will therefore need to remain with that service or be arranged privately.