Health column: small changes can make a big difference to accessing healthcare

For most of us, accessing healthcare can be stressful.

Making an appointment, sitting in a busy waiting room or trying to explain what is wrong can feel daunting, particularly when we are already worried about our health.

But for some people, including many autistic people and people with ADHD, the healthcare environment itself can create additional barriers.

A waiting room can be noisy, crowded or unpredictable.

Bright lights, unfamiliar smells and background conversations can become overwhelming.

A last-minute change to an appointment, a long wait without knowing how long it will be or being asked to explain something quickly can add another layer of stress.

For someone with ADHD, difficulties with organisation, memory, time management or processing information can make navigating healthcare particularly challenging.

For an autistic person, differences in communication, sensory processing and a need for predictability can make an unfamiliar healthcare environment difficult to manage.

None of this means that neurodivergent people don't want healthcare or aren't able to communicate about their health.

It means that sometimes the way services are designed can make accessing that care harder than it needs to be.

Small changes can make a significant difference.

Clear information about what to expect from an appointment can help reduce uncertainty.

Giving people information in different formats, allowing extra time to process questions, explaining medical terminology and checking that someone has understood what has been discussed can all support better communication.

Where possible, services can also consider sensory needs.

This might include offering a quieter waiting area, allowing someone to wait somewhere less crowded or being flexible about how appointments are arranged.

Importantly, these changes aren't only beneficial to autistic people or people with ADHD.

Clear communication, accessible information and a more predictable healthcare experience can make services easier to use for many patients, including people with anxiety, learning disabilities, dementia or other conditions.

Listening to people's experiences is an important part of understanding where these barriers exist.

A service may appear accessible on paper, but the experience of actually using it can tell a very different story.

That is why sharing your experience of healthcare matters.

Whether an appointment went particularly well, you struggled to get the support you needed, or a small adjustment made a significant difference, your feedback can help services understand what is working and where improvements are needed.

Healthcare should be a place where people feel able to ask for help, not another source of unnecessary stress.

For neurodivergent people in particular, making healthcare more accessible doesn't necessarily require dramatic changes.

Sometimes it starts with something as simple as asking: “What would make this appointment easier for you?”

Listening to the answer could be one of the most important adjustments of all.