Clinicians, Innovators and Community Leaders Align on Measures to Ensure ADHD Patients are Appropriately Diagnosed and Treated

Report from a first-ever national leadership summit urges policies to prevent over- and under-diagnosis, highlighting the dangers of both for the ADHD community

WASHINGTON, June 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Members of the Steering Committee of the National Leadership Summit on the Appropriate Use of ADHD Treatments today released their final report, following a landmark convening of the nation's leading attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) experts and community members. The document offers a critical look at health system challenges that result in both over- and under-diagnosis of people with ADHD – children and adults alike – and recommends systemic approaches to drive effective, appropriate diagnosis and treatment.

During a month-long series of deliberations this spring, delegates to the National Summit considered the state of ADHD in the U.S. and specific recommendations for policymakers and the ADHD stakeholder community to advance evidence-based care and improve outcomes.

This first-ever report positions all ADHD stakeholders to tackle urgent questions about how to drive better outcomes by getting diagnosis and treatment right for the millions of children and adults with ADHD. As Dr. Shanta Whitaker, the Summit's Chief Science Officer, explained, "The ADHD community needs a better playbook for caring for people with ADHD and ensuring that the public has accurate, data-driven information. By breaking down longstanding barriers between clinicians, patients, caregivers, innovators and community leaders, the Leadership Summit enabled a cross-section of leaders to consider how we ensure that care providers are better equipped to make accurate diagnoses and how the full range of treatment options – including but not limited to medication – are accessible and properly matched to the right patients. We have real work to do as a community, and in partnership with policy leaders, to create the best possible outcomes for people with ADHD."

The report lands on four key themes for change:

• Improved Provider Education to ensure ADHD is properly diagnosed and managed across the lifespan in everyday life, clinical, and school-based settings. Today, many clinicians and non-clinicians without proper qualifications attempt to diagnose or even treat people with ADHD, as well as some without it (who can be misdiagnosed). More must be done to ensure care providers have the tools and training to help them navigate diagnosis and treatment and to make appropriate referrals where they do not.
• Research and Innovation to strengthen the evidence base, improve diagnostic tools, and better understand long-term outcomes for all communities impacted. This should include an emphasis not only on traditional therapeutic approaches, but also on issues of nutrition, sleep, and physical activity.
• Policies to Ensure Access to Appropriate Resources and Treatments by supporting awareness of and access to multifaceted treatment, addressing medication shortages, and removing barriers to behavioral care; and
• Public Education to reduce misunderstanding, combat misinformation, and ensure individuals with ADHD are supported—not blamed—in seeking appropriate care and diagnosis.

To read the full Final Report, please visit adhdappropriateuse.org.

About

The National Leadership Summit on the Appropriate Use of ADHD Treatments brought together clinical experts, policy leaders, and individuals with lived experience for a three-part dynamic, solutions-focused conversation on the future of ADHD care. For more information, please visit adhdappropriateuse.org.

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SOURCE National Leadership Summit on the Appropriate Use of ADHD Treatments