International healthcare technology company, Qbtech, has created QbTest Telehealth, an out of clinic modification to its approach to ADHD assessment, QbTest.
Patients perform a test when and where it suits them and require no specialist in-clinic hardware, only access to a PC and standard webcam. Harnessing facial recognition through a webcam to track head movement, a typical test lasts no more than 15-20 minutes. Results are assembled into a report and compared with normal data from other people of the same sex and age and are automatically sent to the clinician. Reports, which include self-ratings, along with their interviews, are used to make diagnostic decisions, and to improve communication with patients and their families.
QbTest is a CE-marked, FDA approved medical device that simultaneously measures attention, impulsivity, and motor activity to speed up ADHD diagnosis and improve treatment evaluation. In England, QbTest has been shown to speed up the time to diagnostic decision, enable early intervention and significantly reduce costs for NHS trusts.
80% of the world’s healthcare professionals have reported that their patient’s mental health has worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. There is growing concern that ADHD care is compromised as patients have not been able to make clinic visits during lockdown. ADHD is strongly associated with anxiety and other related disorders and in a recent survey by ADDitude 73% of those with ADHD reported feeling anxious due to COVID-19. Continued access to healthcare should help those who are anxious, and it is a top priority for clinicians specialising in ADHD.
In the UK child and adolescent psychiatrist Dr. Kumaran Thevan has used QbTest Telehealth within the NHS ADHD service and more recently in private practice.
He said: “During lockdown, there has been increased pressure on children with inattention, and their parents, to cope with remote learning. The demand for assessments has increased and often in the absence of reliable school input - given teachers are seeing pupils via video link only. Having QbTest Telehealth has been invaluable. In the patients that have undertaken testing, they have found it convenient and the ability to share results quickly has been reassuring. All in all, it has become an integral part of remote clinical assessments and testing treatment efficacy. I envisage this will continue, even after the pandemic”.
Tony Doyle, Qbtech managing director and NHS Innovation fellow, added: “QbTest is becoming a standard part of ADHD assessment in the NHS and over the last two years we have been developing technology for tests to be conducted without the need for a clinic visit. QbTest Telehealth makes this possible, enabling clinicians to support their patients remotely during COVID 19 restrictions and beyond.”
