Mike Elliott, Australian Democrats in the SA Parliament

Extract from Hansard

Legislative Council
8 July 1999

Mike Elliott
Leader Australian Democrats
Member of the Legislative Council

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The Hon. M.J. ELLIOTT: I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Treasurer, representing the Minister for Education, a question about attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and schooling.

The Hon. M.J. ELLIOTT: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is now amongst the most diagnosed of all childhood disorders in Australia and the United States. It is a disorder typified by impulsivity, hyperactivity and inattention. Expert opinion agrees that the impact of ADHD is most keenly felt in the school environment and, as a consequence, it is an important education issue needing specific educational responses. Put simply, young people with ADHD learn and behave differently. At school they often have difficulties with organisation, information processing, social skills and self-esteem.

It is worth noting comments in this morning's Advertiser by Professor Peter Freebody of Griffith University who said:

In the past, economies built on manufacturing had places for kids who were not. . . critical manipulators of information and language. The future now seems not to have room for them.

In response, Professor Freebody calls on educators to question school sizes and current study programs. Clearly, students with ADHD are amongst this group for whom there is no room in our schools (and I do not mean in the physical sense), and there is a concern that increasingly they are being excluded or medicated with amphetamines.

While ADHD is a condition that requires a range of medical, social and educational treatments, recent research in South Australia seems to indicate that currently only medical treatments are accessible. I want to make clear that I am not opposed to the use of amphetamines as part of the NH&MRC recommended multi-modal approach to ADHD, but there is a concern about its being used as the primary or sole form of treatment.

Research in the United States reveals that the current focus on medical and remedial education responses misses 50 per cent of those experiencing difficulties with ADHD in schools. It is argued that at least 50 per cent of students with ADHD do not receive the support they need in important areas such as organisation and social skills, information manipulation and self-esteem. With this in mind, I note that during the Estimates Committees last week the Minister for Human Services revealed that 2 per cent of South Australian young people were on drugs of dependence for ADHD. This figure is confirmed in a joint paper by Flinders University researcher Brenton Prosser and University of Nebraska Associate Professor Robert Reid in the most recent edition of the American Journal of Emotional and Behavioural Disorders.

The paper also found higher amphetamine use for ADHD in areas of Adelaide with lower income and employment. It is the second published South Australian based paper to argue that current health and education policies contribute to the growth of ADHD diagnosis and treatment with amphetamines. The Prosser and Reid paper is part of a broader doctoral study, the final report of which was released last week. This broader study finds that many difficulties are masked by medication in younger years only to become significant with the increased academic and social demands of teenage years.

The report also confirms research in the United States that demonstrates that many parents are seeking ADHD diagnosis and drug treatment because they are frustrated and dissatisfied with education authority responses. The report found that a major barrier to parents accessing specific educational treatments is that our schools are under-resourced and decisions are being made purely on economic grounds. Teachers want to help, but there are already too many demands placed on them. It is no surprise that parents of children who behave and learn differently turn to a label such as ADHD to help secure additional school resources.

The issue of inadequate ADHD services has been pursued for some time in this place by the Democrats. On 26 May and 4 August last year, we asked questions in the Parliament and expressed concern that current services were inadequate and that an inter-agency Education Department paper on ADHD, commenced in 1996, was still under ongoing review. Given the significance of this issue and the degree of public concern, it is surprising to find that the report has not been released. My questions are:

1. Will the Minister explain to South Australians why there are not the resources to cater for students with ADHD in our schools and whether this is behind the recent growth in drug use to treat the disorder?

2. In the face of mounting research that contradicts the Government's reassurances of May and August last year, does the Minister still affirm that the full range of services, including educational services, are reaching our young people with ADHD?

3. Will the Minister also explain why there has been such a long delay in the final release of the Education Department's inter-agency report on ADHD which, as I said, commenced in 1996?