Medication breaks in ADHD

Ibrahim, K. & Donyai, P. What stops practitioners discussing medication breaks in children and adolescents with ADHD? Identifying barriers through theory-driven qualitative research. ADHD Atten Def Hyp Disord (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12402-018-0258-9

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Treatment guidelines for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children recommend ‘drug holidays’ to assess the continual need for medication. Drug holidays are interruptions in treatment which allows parents and clinicians to monitor children. Recent research from the department, conducted under the supervision of Dr. Parastou Donyai, explored barriers which prevent clinicians from initiating planned ‘drug holidays’. Components of the Capability-Opportunity-Motivation (COM-B) model was used to analyse interview transcripts with clinicians. Knowledge and skills of general practitioner doctors as well as time contraints could be some of the barriers reported by this study. The full article can be accessed here, https://doi.org/10.1007/s12402-018-0258-9.