(UK) Kids in Wakefield wait 16 wks for ASD diagnosis, instead of 100 wks; others wait 3 yrs

Mar 22, 2019, Wakefield Express: 84 per cent cut in NHS waiting times for autism referrals https://www.wakefieldexpress.co.uk/news/84-per-cent-cut-in-nhs-waiting-times-for-autism-referrals-1-9667599 Waiting times for Wakefield children referred for an autism assessment by the NHS have been drastically cut over the last four years. Youngsters and their families who are sent to a consultant for a diagnosis are now waiting an average of 16 weeks for results, compared to 100 weeks in February 2015. Over the same time period, the waiting list for children referred to the Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs Pinderfields, Pontefract and Dewsbury hospitals, has fallen from above 800 to below 20 last December. … In other areas of the country, youngsters are still waiting more than three years for assessment, the National Autistic Society says. Speaking about the improvement at a health and wellbeing board meeting on Thursday, the trust's chief executive Martin Barkley said: "This has been a real success story. …