The G. F. Still ADHD Clinic™

In 1902, the British pediatrician Sir George Frederic Still first described some affected children having no “moral control” over their behavior despite possessing unimpared intelligence. The year following the 1936 FDA approval of benzedrine, Dr. Charles Bradley inadvertently discovered the drug improved behavior in these children. Fellow physicians mostly ignored his discovery, and the condition was not included in the first edition of Diagnostic and Statistical and Manual of Mental Disorders published in 1936. It wasn’t until the second edition of the DSM that the American Psychiatric Association included the diagnositc phrase “hyperkinetic reaction of childhood.”

While still a mystery in many ways, there are effective treatments for what we know today as Attention Deficit Disorder. Multiple drug classes and life adaptations impart relief to many children and adults dealing with this problem. Most all pediatricians have faced concerned parents who are sometimes extremely frustrated with a condition that threatens all normal family fabric.

The physicians at Storybook Pediatrics have all also experienced these parental cries for help. It is often more than a solo or even a group practice can do to treat ADHD and all the other ills. Some physicians elect to refer all their ADHD patients out. Appointments in these specialized referral clinics often take months to schedule while these children languish. Pediatricians also don’t often refer these children to other local pediatricians for fear of losing their patients despite their preference not to treat ADHD themselves.

At Storybook Pediatrics, we get this. For all pediatricians, ADHD at some point is often our the least favorite part of our chosen profession. But there are some of us who view this in reverse. Our newest professional colleague Dr. Laurie Gillespie would rather treat these children than anything else. Physician colleagues like her are a valuable local resource to our pediatric community.

In order to share her skills, Storybook Pediatrics has created the G. F. Still ADHD Clinic™. We will provide the physical and IT structure so that our patients and those of other pediatric practices can get treatment for ADHD in an environment where there is time and focus for this difficult problem. Children with ADHD or associated issues do not have to be patients of Storybook Pediatrics to be seen. The G. F. Still ADHD Clinic™ will accept referrals from local physicians, or self-referrals from parents who ask for help. Patients of other physicians will be directed back to their local providers for all other health care issues.