Category: <span>news</span>

5th January 2021

Partial Clinic Closure

As a result of the UK Government announcement on 4^th January 2021, it is with great sadness that the Oxford ADHD & Autism Centre must temporarily partially close its doors again to all face-to-face appointments, in the interest of safety and wellbeing for all concerned.

We will continue to operate all appointments that can be conducted by video call or telephone.  We will be in touch with all patients booked for children’s assessments or face to face appointments during January and February in the next few days, so please bear with us during this time.  We thank you for your patience and understanding.

We sincerely hope that we will be able to re-open fully during February, but we will follow UK Government guidelines as to when this will be possible.  Please do check our website for further updates.

Waiting list update

Oxford ADHD & Autism Centre temporarily closed to new enquiries for children’s assessments only in October 2020.  Demand for our high-quality services was extraordinary in 2020 and along with a closure of the clinic during the first national lockdown from March to June, our waiting times grew to lengths beyond where we are comfortable.

We were hoping to reopen the waiting list for children’s assessments in the New Year; however, as a result of this latest closure and continued pressure on our limited opening due to the pandemic, we will review the situation again in February.

This has been an exceedingly difficult decision to make, but it is in the best interests of all our current patients, staff, and those already waiting to be seen.

If you have already been contacted with a confirmation email to advise that your child has been added to our waiting list, then please be assured that you remain on this list and we will be in touch in due course to offer you an assessment, once we are fully open again, your forms have been received, and you come to the top of the list.

Please note that we are still open to all existing patients; and can continue to accept new patients for ADHD medication reviews, coaching/mentoring, and all Adult assessments, provided you are happy to have a video or telephone call.  The closure of our waiting list applies only to new children’s assessments for ADHD, Autism or combined Neurodevelopmental.

We thank you for your understanding and support and look forward to being able to update you again soon.

Oxford ADHD & Autism Centre will close at 5pm on Wednesday 23rd December 2020 and will reopen on Monday 4th January 2021 at 9am.

If you require a prescription over the Christmas period, please ensure that this is requested no later than 2pm on Monday 21st December.  Please note that Royal Mail are experiencing delays with their postage, so although we send out prescriptions by 1st class signed for delivery, we cannot guarantee how quickly they will be received at present.

22nd October 2020

It is with regret that the Oxford ADHD & Autism Centre is temporarily closing to new enquiries for children’s assessments.  Demand for our high-quality services has been extraordinary in recent months and our waiting times have grown to lengths beyond where we are comfortable.

This was an exceedingly difficult decision to make, but it is in the best interests of all our current patients, staff, and those already waiting to be seen.  We will review the situation in the new year, so please check for updates on our website in January.

If you have already been contacted with a confirmation email to advise that your child has been added to our waiting list, then please be assured that you remain on this list and we will be in touch in due course to offer you an assessment, once your forms have been received and you come to the top of the list.

Please note that we are still open to all existing patients; and can continue to accept new patients for ADHD medication reviews, coaching/mentoring, and all Adult assessments.  This closure applies only to new children’s assessments for ADHD, Autism or combined Neurodevelopmental.

We thank you for your understanding and support and look forward to being able to update you again in the new year.

In line with the latest UK Government guidance, the clinic is open, having undertaken a risk assessment to comply with the guidance on managing the risk of Covid-19 and staying Covid-19 secure.  We have taken measures to ensure the health and well being of our staff and patients, and to prevent the spread of the virus.

We are limiting the numbers of patients scheduled at any one time for face to face assessments in the clinic.  Limitations on the number of patients we can see in the clinic have led to an increase in our waiting times.  For all children’s assessments the waiting time is approximately 4 months.  For adults, the waiting time is approximately 2-4 weeks for ADHD assessments and 3 months for Autism assessments.

All follow up appointments will continue to be conducted remotely until further notice.

If you are scheduled to visit the clinic for an assessment, please can you contact us as soon as possible if you have been advised to self isolate, or if you/your child have any of the main symptoms suggestive of COVID-19 which include:

• high temperature
• new continuous cough (coughing a lot for more than an hour or 3 or more coughing episodes within 24 hours)
• a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste

For more information please visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/coronavirus-covid-19-uk-government-response

If you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

⭐  We are HIRING!  ⭐  

We have the following vacancies:

Activity Coordinator
16 hours per week, Term time only

Saturday Youth Support Worker
Saturday mornings, Wolvercote, Oxford

Youth Group Coordinator
Thursdays 5:30pm – 8:30pm, term time only, Abingdon

Youth Support Worker
Thursdays 5:30pm – 8:30pm, term time only, Abingdon

Casual Support Workers
Flexible casual work available in Summer and Easter school holidays and occasional evening and weekend youth groups

ADVERT VACANCIES – 2020-06

Closing date for all posts: Monday 13^th July 2020

Visit our website for details and to apply:
www.afso.org.uk/vacancies

Having had to temporarily close the clinic to all face to face appointments as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, we are happy to announce that the Clinic has reopened, albeit in a limited capacity.

In line with the latest UK Government guidance, we have undertaken a risk assessment and comply with the guidance on managing the risk of Covid-19 and staying Covid-19 secure.  We have taken measures to ensure the health and well being of our staff and patients, and to prevent the spread of the virus.

The clinic has reopened on a limited basis to face to face assessments for children’s ADHD.  At this stage, children’s Autism and Neurodevelopmental combined (ADHD and Autism) assessments, are temporarily on hold, as these assessments cannot be safely conducted with the current 2 metre social distancing guidance.  We do however hold a waiting list for all assessments and we are still accepting new additions to the waiting list, so please do get in touch with us if you would like to know more.

Adult assessments for ADHD and Autism, along with all children’s and adult follow up appointments continue to be scheduled and will be conducted remotely until further notice.  Please contact us if you would like to arrange an appointment.

If you are scheduled to visit the clinic for a children’s ADHD assessment please can you contact us as soon as possible if:

– You/your child have any symptoms suggestive of COVID-19 (high temperature, continuous cough, muscle pain, difficulty breathing, a loss of, or change to, your sense of smell or taste)
– You/your child or a close member of your family have any serious underlying health conditions

For more information please visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/coronavirus-covid-19-uk-government-response

If you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Do you have a child aged 8 – 12? Are you interested in your child’s sleep habits? Would you be willing to participate in important research about children’s sleep related problems and their thoughts about sleep?

Psychology Study: Sleep-related problems and beliefs, attitudes and concerns about sleep in children with and without autism spectrum conditions (ASC).

I am currently completing an MSc in Psychology at Oxford Brookes University and am looking to recruit parents/carers with children aged 8 – 12 (both with and without autism spectrum conditions) (ASC) as participants for my research project. My project is about sleep related problems and beliefs, attitudes and concerns about sleep in  children. Many children experience sleep related problems but this number is even greater amongst children with autism spectrum conditions.  To participate, you (the parent) would need to complete an online questionnaire including some general details about you and your child and your child’s sleep habits, behaviours and thoughts about sleep.  I am interested in hearing from you whether or not your child has difficulties with sleep. Click on the link to find out more and/or to participate: https://brookeshls.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bxVtXUiN2MY6jVX

If you would like further details, please contact Julie Bennett (MSc Researcher, Oxford Brookes University)

Email: 18039339@brookes.ac.uk

Many thanks,

Julie Bennett

BMC Medicine have published a paper on “Guidance for identification and treatment of individuals with attention deficit / hyperactivity disorder and autism spectrum disorder based upon expert consensus”.

Authors of the paper include Dr Polly Branney – Clinical Director of Oxford ADHD & Autism Centre, Professor Peter Hill – Consultant Psychiatrist, Dr Jack Hollingdale – Clinical Psychologist, and Emma Woodhouse – Neurodevelopmental Specialist.

You can read the publication using the link below.

ADHD+ASD consensus, 2020

In view of the recent advice regarding Covid-19 (Coronavirus), we are taking measures to ensure the health and wellbeing of our staff and patients. Please note that the clinic will be operating as usual and we are not cancelling appointments, but are trying to take reasonable and measured steps to prevent the spread of the virus. In accordance with UK guidance, please can you let us know as soon as possible if you are due to visit the clinic and:

– You/your child have any symptoms suggestive of COVID-19 (fever, cough, muscle pain, difficulty breathing) Please note that the latest guidance says that anyone who has a persistent cough or high temperature must stay at home for seven days
– You/your child or a close member of your family have any serious underlying health conditions
– You/your child have travelled to any of the category 1 or category 2 level countries. For more information please visit:

https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/coronavirus-covid-19-uk-government-response

If you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.