The ADHD Problem and Medication.
In America, millions of children are being diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). To treat ADHD these children are being prescribed drugs such as Ritalin and Adderall. Studies have shown that 12-20% of children are diagnosed with ADHD, and a large percentage is possibly misdiagnosed. Miller (n.d.) in the article “Are Schools Driving ADHD Diagnoses?” discusses how it is possible that schools are motivated to evaluate and possibly diagnose children with ADHD because of state policies that are in place. In “Nearly 1 Million Children Potentially Misdiagnosed with ADHD,” Henion and Elder (2010) argue that age is a factor that is not properly accounted for when evaluating children causing a massive misdiagnoses problem. Boseley (2015) in “Generation meds: the US children who grow up on prescription meds,” and Magee (2015) in “Does your child need Ritalin?” both make the case that other incentives are causing parents to seek out prescriptions for Ritalin causing medical practitioners to diagnose ADHD without properly following the guidelines. Based on the research, most children may have been misdiagnosed with ADHD due to multiple contributing factors: normal child behavior being mistaken for symptoms; policies that incentivizes the diagnosis; the quick fix solution being picked over the therapy to help children manage with performing at school.
Behavior from immaturity can mimic similar symptoms as ADHD without actually having it. When teachers and health practitioners evaluate children, it seems that aren’t taking their age into account. Studies indicate that normal children behaviors are being attributed to ADHD symptoms potentially causing misdiagnosis. Using data from a study funded by the National Center for Education Statistics, Elder (2010) saw differences in ADHD diagnosis and medication rates between youngest and oldest children in the same grade. According to the study, “the youngest kindergartners were 60 percent more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD than the oldest children in the same grade”(para. 9). Elder argues that the younger the child, the harder it is for teachers to control their behavior and as a result, they perceive their behavior as inattention or hyperactivity causing them to send the children to be evaluated for ADHD. Magee (2015) has a similar, but more credible argument because she cites quotes from Professor Tim Kendall, consultant psychiatrist and director of the National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health at the Royal College of Psychiatrists and David Webster, treasurer of the Association of Educational Psychologists. Webster states that “there is evidence that it is being prescribed to children as young as three and that it’s being administered to children with mild to moderate ADHD, as opposed to severe which is what the NICE guidelines dictate.” Professor Kendall is critical of the diagnoses because they are essentially medicating typical children’s behavior such as naughtiness, tantrums, inability to sit still, and instead of teaching them how to live successfully with their condition, they are putting a Band-Aid on the problem.
Performance is the main reason that schools and parents are seeking to medicate the children. The pressure to perform academically is causing parents to seek out a diagnosis that would prescribe the child Ritalin, so that they can have more success in school. Boseley (2015) numbers of children diagnosed with ADHD are higher in middle class families because they are under more pressure to perform academically than the children in poorer families. Boseley (2015) quotes Ilina Singh, professor of neuroscience and society at Oxford University that claims “parents will begin to look at psychiatric diagnosis and treatment with drugs as one option for making children perform better.” In these cases, children may not necessarily need prescriptions but the parents are seeking it out to improve the children’s test scores. Magee (2015) includes in her article a story of a child named Jack of age 11, after 2 weeks on Ritalin would show major improvement in his concentration and in his school work. The story isn’t as effective as evidence because it is anecdotal, but it does support the effectiveness as the drug as performance enhancer for children academically.
Not only parents who are worried about their children’s performance benefit from the diagnosis but thanks to educational policies, the schools themselves are in a position that would stand to benefit as well. Research shows that there is a direct correlation between state educational policies and ADHD in children. Miller (n.d.) argues that due to the accountability laws such as, No Child Left Behind, the financial incentive that the schools were to gain if students did well in their standardized tests scores caused a direct impact on students being evaluated and diagnosed with ADHD. Miller (n.d.) cites Stephen Hinshaw, a clinical psychologist, and his team who conducted a study that found “the correlation between states with the highest rates of ADHD diagnosis and laws that penalize school districts when students fail”(para. 6). Elder also implies a similar claim by asserting the importance that the teachers’ opinion is to sending a child to be evaluated and diagnosed. In his study, Hinshaw also found that the states that first adopted the accountability laws before No Child Left Behind also saw a higher rate of ADHD diagnosis among the children.
In conclusion, it is clear that multiple factors have contributed to the misdiagnosis of ADHD in America. Mistaking normal children immature behavior for symptoms, academic pressure on the children and parents, and financial incentives for the schools due to accountability laws all contributed to the rising problem of children misdiagnosed and having to be medicated.
by Rafael A.
