Researchers have discovered that people with ADHD are more likely to experience violence and attend hospital emergency departments.
New research by Cardiff University, Swansea University and the University of York looked at how neurodevelopmental diagnoses were linked to assault-related attendances at Emergency Departments.
The team analysed population data from residents in Wales between 2012 and 2024, and considered a range of health and socio-demographic characteristics of patients that might be associated with their attendance in an emergency department due to violence.
Professor Simon Moore, Director of the Violence Research Group at Cardiff University, said: “It is known that alcohol misuse, drug abuse, and poor mental health have previously been linked with increased exposure to violence. We wanted to better understand whether neurodevelopmental diagnoses were also associated with violence-related attendances at Emergency Departments.”
The team found that people with ADHD, personality disorders, and learning difficulties were at a higher risk of having violence-related visits to emergency departments.
However, autism spectrum disorder reduced the likelihood of attending emergency departments due to violence.
Although the findings do not suggest that neurodevelopmental diagnoses themselves lead to violence exposure, they do suggest that there are opportunities for Violence Prevention Teams in emergency departments to identify patients attending due to violence, the psychosocial vulnerabilities that contribute to their exposure to violence and therefore work with other organisations so that patients are better supported.
Professor Sinead Brophy, from the Centre for Population Health based at Swansea University said: “Hospital violence prevention services can identify people with neurodiversity, and people with neurodiversity do engage with these services. This shows that investing in these programmes is a proven evidence-based method of ensuring vulnerable people are supported when they most need it.”
The research was conducted by the Centre for Health Economics at the University of York, Swansea University, the Violence Research Group at the School of Dentistry at Cardiff University, the Security, Crime and Intelligence Innovation Institute at Cardiff University, the Aneurin Bevan University Health Board, and the Unit for Development in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities at the University of South Wales.