Right to Choose – Information for patients
NHS waiting times for the diagnosis of neurodevelopmental conditions such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) can at present take months to years. To support NHS waiting times for these conditions, the North East and Cumbria Integrated Care Board (ICB) currently fund private referrals that can provide an NHS diagnosis sooner than this.
If you already have an elective NHS referral in place for a neurodevelopmental diagnostic assessment, you can seek one of these private referrals. This is called a Right to Choose (RTC) referral.
If you want to discuss a Neurodevelopmental assessment and/or a Right To Choose Referral or are uncertain about any of this, please book a routine appointment with your usual GP. If you are already on an NHS waiting list for a neurodevelopmental diagnostic assessment for ASD and/or ADHD please ask to discuss with our secretary team and they can advise you on RTC options.
Points to note:
- It is the patient's responsibility to choose the private provider. Always check the information and advice given by private providers carefully, including any reviews about them, as you would any service.
- Only some private providers are funded locally to provide a Right to Choose referral. Nationally private providers may be funded by other ICBs and will accept referrals from any ICB area, but this may not funded locally. We will let you know the currently funded RTC providers locally.
- If you get accepted on a Right to Choose referral, you MUST inform the secondary care NHS team. This then helps reduce the NHS waiting times and gives your other NHS place on the waiting list to another patient. You cannot have two NHS referrals for the same problem at the same time and may lose your space on both waiting lists if you do not cancel one of them.
- We currently do not enter into Shared Care Agreements with private providers. We recommend you do not start medication with a private provider unless you are able to fund private prescriptions long term. GPs cannot prescribe ADHD medications without ongoing specialist care and a shared care agreement. See our separate guidance on Shared Care prescribing (LINK)
- After diagnosis we can refer you back into NHS secondary care services to consider medication if appropriate. If you are started on medication by a private provider it may be funded initially by the NHS under RTC but then at some point you may need to pay for private prescriptions until transfer back to an NHS Mental Health team. Your medication may also be changed or stopped once back with NHS secondary care services.
Further information: