“Things Need to Change”: NHS England’s First Director for Neurodivergence & Mental Health Speaks Out

For Mental Health Awareness Week, Ben chats with Dr Adrian James, one of the UK’s most senior psychiatrists and NHS England’s first Medical Director for Mental Health and Neurodiversity. Adrian takes on this role at a crucial time, with rising waitlists, overwhelmed services turning away new referrals, and medication shortages forcing patients to ration.

They delve into the postcode lottery of waiting lists, ongoing medication shortages, the lack of accessible NHS data, obstacles to the Right to Choose, why autism in women is so often overlooked, and what’s needed to fix a broken system.

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00:00 Introduction

2:03 Adrian’s Brain

3:09 Adrian: “I Thought Mental Illness Happened to Other People”

5:38 Psychiatrists VS Lived Experience

6:30 What Does Adrian Do?

7:53 Why Adrian Took on the Role: “Things Needed to Change”

9:50 NHS Director or Neurodiversity and Mental Health: One Year In

10:45 Mental Health VS Neurodiversity

11:12 If Adrian Had a Magic Wand

12:33 ADHD & Autism Assessments: How Do We Clear This Backlog?

15:08 Ben: “No-one is on the List on a Whim!”

17:14 Resource & Funding VS NHS

19:50 Ben’s Push For Real Answers on Long Wait Lists, ADHD & Autism Diagnosis Delays

22:00 The Messages Adrian Receives

23:43 Neurodivergence: The Power of Early Intervention

26:26 The Missed Women of Autism: “What Now?”

30:31 Declined Right To Choose: Why?

32:44 Can All GP’s Diagnose Neurodivergence?

34:23 What Neurodiversity Training is Happening in the NHS?

37:00 What Data Does the NHS Collect Around Neurodivergence?

37:33 Why Are Waitlist Times So Different Around the Country?

38:52 How Do You Action Change?

43:00 The ADHD Medication Shortage VS NHS

46:28 Do We Have Enough GP’s?

47:33 How Do We Up-Skill Gp’s Understanding of Neurodiversity?

50:56 Adrian: “I’m Very Aware We Haven’t Got Things Right”

52:21 Neurodiversity: Parallels to Mental Health Evolution

55:42 What is a Super Specialist?

56:37 PMDD: What Exposure Is Adrian Having to This?

57:45 A Face For Neurodiversity in the NHS

58:44 NHS VS Change and Solutions

1:00:15 Weaving Neurodivergence into the NHS & Adrian’s Green Dot Badge Giving

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On "The Hidden 20%," host Ben Branson chats with neurodivergent [ADHD, Autism, Dyscalculia, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Tourette's etc.] creatives, entrepreneurs, and experts to see how great minds.. think differently.

Host: Ben Branson

Head of Production: Bella Neale

Assistant Producer: Phoebe De Leiburné

Video Editor: James Scriven

Social Media Manager: Charlie Young

Music: Jackson Greenberg

Brought to you by charity The Hidden 20% #1203348

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