ADHD Awareness Week : ADHD Partnership Support Pack
Press release from Shire plc
ADHD Awareness Week event launches first of its kind online ADHD Partnership Support Pack to help parents and teachers support school-age children with ADHD
Support pack reinforces the importance of the parent-teacher partnership in ensuring the success of children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) at school
Nyon, Switzerland – 10.30 -- 20 September 2011 – Shire plc (LSE: SHP, NASDAQ: SHPGY), the global specialty biopharmaceutical company, today announced the launch of the ADHD Partnership Support Pack1 at the “ADHD in Children and Adolescents: Addressing Barriers to Integration and Socialisation in School” meeting in Brussels. The meeting, comprising of leading figures from the fields of policy, education and ADHD advocacy from across Europe, was held as part of ADHD Awareness Week. Delegates of the meeting reviewed the latest research findings on the impact of ADHD on school-age children, and agreed on actionable steps to improve understanding and acceptance of ADHD in schools. In reaching for that new threshold, delegates also reaffirmed the importance of the parent-teacher partnership, and approved the ADHD Partnership Support Pack for use by teaching/educational networks, family organisations and ADHD advocacy groups.
The ADHD Partnership Support Pack -- developed in collaboration with ADHD Europe, a European non-profit umbrella organisation representing 27 national and regional organisations from 19 countries2 in advancing the cause of ADHD, and an expert European ADHD Awareness Taskforce -- is essentially a toolkit that helps parents, carers, teachers and special educational needs coordinators across Europe to work together in supporting school-age children with ADHD.1
This easy-to-use practical reference tool, designed to allow users to find clear, incisive answers and guidance quickly, is divided into five main sections: “Talking about Diagnosis, Management and Treatment”, “Improving Education and Study Skills”, “Managing Behaviours”, “Building Life and Social Skills” and “Further Information”.1 Each section signposts relevant information and provides links to useful resources, which include guides to structure dialogue between parents and teachers, as well as downloadable tools to help parents and schools agree on a consistent approach to supporting a child with ADHD, and work in effective partnership with each other to make a real difference in the school experience of that individual child.
“The central organising principle of the ADHD Partnership Support Pack is the parent-teacher partnership which has the shared goal of helping children with ADHD realise their full potential at school,” said Mr Fintan O’Regan, Chair of the expert Taskforce. “This is a definitive online resource which enables teachers to understand the real impact of ADHD on the child. However the major strength of the pack is that it provides practical tools and support that allow parents and teachers to, firstly, find the core essential information they need, in simple, clear, graphic formats, and secondly, leverage the crucial role of their partnership in helping children with ADHD succeed in the school setting.”
A recent European survey of over 2,500 respondents shows significantly worse outcomes for children with ADHD at school and home, when compared to children without ADHD.3 The data included a notable impairment on achievement at school* – children with ADHD had significantly more school days missed and were more frequently ‘bottom of the class’ than those without ADHD.4 A child with ADHD is also more likely to get expelled or suspended, or repeat a grade.5
“Shire is committed to providing more options, education, and support to the global ADHD community. We envisioned creating a resource that would address head-on the need to reinforce parent-teacher understanding of the disease and encourage collaboration for an individualized treatment. Better recognition of the disorder and support of the patients will minimize the lifelong impairment created by ADHD” said Dr Arnaud Partiot, Senior Vice President and Product General Manager ADHD Business Unit (ex-US) at Shire. “This toolkit is a positive step forward and a useful support to understand and address the very significant imbalances that ADHD children encounter during their school day and at home. This will contribute to unleash their full potential.”
The ADHD Partnership Support Pack is available for download here. Following today’s launch of the English version, the ADHD Partnership Support Pack will subsequently be made available in other European languages.
* As reported by parents/caregivers eligible for the scale/score analyses (aged 6 years or above for items relating to school and 13 years and above for conduct problems)
