“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.


_________


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


__________


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


_____________________________________


Follow & subscribe…


Website: www.hidden20.org


Instagram / TikTok / Youtube / X: @Hidden20charity


Ben Branson @seedlip_ben


Dr Adrian James @dradrianjames


If you'd like to support The Hidden 20%, you can buy a "green
dot" badge at https://www.hidden20.org/thegreendot/p/badge. All
proceeds go to the charity.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.