Aotearoa / New Zealand

This is what happened this week.

New Zealanders with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) will now have easier access to diagnosis and medication after the government changed prescribing rules.

But there is still so much we don’t know about ADHD in Aotearoa. And while these changes will help many, easier access to medication alone won’t fill the gaps in other supports people with ADHD need to live well.

From February 2026 trained GPS and nurse practitioners will be able to diagnose and treat ADHD. Under the current system, only paediatricians or psychiatrists can make the diagnosis. GPs and nurse practitioners then provide followup care.

The current process – which is both time-consuming and expensive – has been widely criticised. The government’s changes are expected to at least partially address these issues.

Worldwide estimates suggest ADHD in adults ranges from 2.5% to 3.4% of most populations. But England’s 2023 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey found 13.9% of adults met criteria warranting clinical assessment. Only 0.5% had been professionally diagnosed.

Recent research found 0.6% of the adult population in New Zealand was receiving drug treatment for ADHD. Based on a conservative estimate of 2.6% of adults with ADHD, this shows a large “treatment gap” exists.

Māori and Pacific peoples are less likely to receive ADHD medications. These inequities begin early. Tamariki Māori screened for ADHD at age four are less likely to receive medication than their non-Māori peers.

There are also substantial differences in the age of diagnosis across sociodemographic groups. These inequities raise serious concerns about access and systemic bias.

International research shows untreated ADHD is linked to worse mental and physical health, higher mortality, and reduced life expectancy.

ADHD prevalence is also five times higher among youth prisoners and ten times higher among adult prisoners compared to the general population. In Australia, ADHD’s social and economic costs are estimated at A$20.42 billion per year, or $25,071 per person.

Adult women were overrepresented in the sample, constituting 83% of the 689 participants, with over 80% reporting being diagnosed after age 24, reflecting global trends of underdiagnosis in early age among women.

Growing evidence shows many of the negative outcomes of ADHD are mitigated by treatment with medication. One study from Sweden found a significant association between initiating ADHD medication treatment and lower mortality.

However, medication is only part of the solution. Strategies focused on the strengths of people with ADHD can have huge benefits for the individual, their whānau and communities. Particularly when they receive timely diagnosis, treatment and necessary accommodations.

Researchers argue that while ADHD medications provide effective treatment, they should never be the only form of treatment offered.

Expanding prescribing authority is a vital step, but this alone will do little to increase access to psychological and allied health supports to ensure the right care can be provided to people with ADHD.

Hundreds of citizen scientists are set for a stint of bird spotting as the annual New Zealand Garden Bird Survey gets underway on Saturday.

It's the 19th time that Te Tatauranga o ngā Manu Māra o Aotearoa has been held.

From now until 6 July people were encouraged to get out in their garden or go to a local park and look at and listen for birds for one hour, on one day, and record the highest number of each species they notice.

How to take part in the New Zealand Garden Bird Survey:

1. Visit the NZ Garden Bird Survey website to get started.

2. Select a garden or a local park.

3. Choose any ONE day between 28 June and 6 July.

4. Look and listen for birds on that day for ONE hour.

5. For each species, record the HIGHEST number seen or heard at one time.

6. Submit the results online via the NZ Garden Bird Survey website's Take Part page.

A pair of fishers are likely to face charges after being caught with more than 1800 pāua in Porirua.

The pāua was seized by fishery officers based in Wellington earlier this week.

"While inspecting a vessel shortly after it landed at Titahi Bay on Tuesday afternoon, fishery officers discovered 1863 pāua, which had already been shucked," Fisheries New Zealand regional Manager Phil Tasker said.

The estimated retail value of the pāua was approximately $25,000.

Tasker said it was one of the biggest hauls of illegally harvested pāua in recent times.

"There is a maximum daily limit of five pāua per fisher in this area, which gives some context to the scale of this offending, and the potential damage it could do to the pāua population."

He said it was incredibly disappointing to see offending of this scale.

"This fishery is a shared resource, and the rules are there to protect its sustainability for everyone. Our message for those who think they can steal this shared resource is that we will pursue offending and there will be consequences."

Last weeks thread here

Welcome to this week’s casual kōrero thread!

This post will be pinned in this community so you can always find it, and will stay for about a week until replaced by the next one.

It’s for talking about anything that might not justify a full post. For example:

• Something interesting that happened to you

• Something humourous that happened to you

• Something frustrating that happened to you

• A quick question

• A request for recommendations

• Pictures of your pet

• A picture of a cloud that kind of looks like an elephant

• Anything else, there are no rules (except the rule)

So how’s it going?

TL;DR if you haven't already, please fill in the Lemmy.nz Census (even if your account is on another instance). Skip any questions you aren't comfortable answering! Literally any!

This is a reminder post to please fill in the 2025 Lemmy.nz census survey if you haven't already.

You can see the previous post here.

None of the questions are mandatory. They cover questions about where you're from in the country/world, who you are (demographic info), how you use Lemmy and the fediverse, and some extras at the end. Skip anything you're not comfortable answering.

Everyone is welcome! If a question doesn't apply to you then just skip it. Nothing is mandatory so skip anything you don't want to answer.

I worked with Lemmy.ca to try to get a good set of questions that they will also use (with tweaks to suit their audience and learnings from ours).

Let me know if you have any questions!

Answer the Lemmy.nz 2025 Census

This will be the final reminder post.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/31782869

Before/After. Meaux Street, Paris.

A man leaving his home for work at 6.30am went to jump into his work van but unexpectedly found his landlord sitting in it, drinking a handle of beer.

On another occasion, the landlord, Jake Sim, left a note for the tenant on the bench saying: "It's fixed ya winging pr**k" after going to the property to fix a heatpump".

The incidents were a part of a bigger tenancy issue in which Sim turned up at the property intoxicated and banging on the doors, and on other occasions, unlawfully let himself in.

The tenant told the tribunal that on 23 April that year, he went to the rental, the location of which was redacted from the decision, and found a treadmill set up and a TV mounted on a wall.

Around mid-2024, the tenant changed the locks to the house.

He acknowledged it was a breach of his obligations as a tenant but said he felt he had no other option.

The tribunal ruled it would not order him to pay exemplary damages, given the context in which the locks were changed.

Sim then said he had used a lock-picking kit to let himself in on November 14. Then, on November 15, when he believed the tenancy had ended, he climbed through a window.

The tenant claimed that when he returned to the premises on November 16 to finish moving, his gun safe had been opened and $3000 in cash and two rings were gone.

He was ordered to pay the tenant, who was awarded name suppression, $2000 compensation and $1500 in damages.