Management of ADHD in children and adolescents: clinical audit in a South African setting

Abstract

Objectives: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is common, yet under-recognised and undertreated, particularly in low socio-economic settings. Little is known about compliance to evidence- based guidelines in low- and middle-income countries, and no clinical audits have been published in Africa. We undertook to measure compliance in a South African setting using the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines for ADHD as the gold standard to compare compliance and socio-demographic characteristics between two treatment locations in Cape Town and to generate an audit checklist for standardising care.