Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Evaluation and Treatment of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADHD)
at CAPS
If you have been treated for ADHD and would
like to transfer treatment to
CAPS, or have never been diagnosed, but would
like to be evaluated for ADHD,
please note the following instructions to help
facilitate your appointment with us. When you call 650-723-3785 to schedule a triage
appointment, the clinician will review these CAPS policies with
you.
1. Before receiving an appointment: Students with a
prior diagnosis
must provide CAPS with:
* An outside evaluation, treatment summary and/or neuropsychiatric assessment from the referring psychiatrist/physician, demonstrating all diagnoses as part of a complete assessment. The information must include previous treatment attempts and the current medication regimen. (If the workup done outside was inadequate, the student will have to complete a CAPS evaluation to be considered for medication treatment at CAPS.)
* A release of information to speak with the most recent treatment provider
* CAARS rating scales for yourself and an observer must be completed. Parents are the preferred source for the observer form, otherwise siblings or roommates will suffice. Our triage clinician will explain this to you.
* Additional information is encouraged, but not required such as: school records or academic testing reports
* All info can be confidentially FAX'd to us at 650-725-2887 attention: Jerlaine Ewing
2. After receiving all of the above, our clinic will schedule you
for
an ADHD Intake.
3. CAPS cannot prescribe refills
on ADHD medication for the student
prior to the completion of the evaluation.
The student will be encouraged
to continue obtaining medication from the
previous physician until care is
arranged at CAPS. The decision of whether
to medicate and what kind of
medication to use will be made by the
psychiatrist. It is our policy to
choose the appropriate medication with the
least potential for abuse.
4. Students with prior diagnoses
who are requesting academic or other
accommodations may be referred to the
Office of Accessible Education (OAE).
Formal testing will be needed for
academic accommodations if it was not
already completed.
5.
Students interested in a first time evaluation for ADHD will need
to
submit CAARS rating scales for oneself and an observer. Our
triage
clinician will explain this to you.
ADHD may be treated at CAPS through group therapy, brief individual
therapy,
medication management, or a combined approach.
Often
Stanford students have trouble focusing, getting organized, or
completing
their work during times of increased stress. If these problems
have only
started recently, they are unlikely to be caused by ADHD. ADHD
begins in
childhood, and is not simply a response to stress. Because ADHD begins at an
early age, information from parents is particularly helpful and often
essential in making a clinical diagnosis.
At times, the
diagnostic information obtained during an assessment does not
provide a clear
diagnosis. In these cases, a student may be referred outside of CAPS for
neuropsychological testing. In addition to clarifying the diagnosis, this
type of testing may be helpful in illuminating a particular person's learning
style and uncovering any learning disabilities that may be present.