My doctor ordered me a pack of forms and questionnaires to request an assessment for adult autism. In amongst the medical histories and self assessments, this question stuck out;
it is important to know that not everyone who is referred to our service will have a diagnosis of autism confirmed. In the space below, tell us how you think having an autism diagnosis confirmed, or not, might impact on you and your life
What’s going on here? Do you get asked this for other conditions? We’re a community that typically struggles to read between the lines, so I could be way off, but this feels grudging to me. It’s a question that says - what’s the point of us even offering this service, and why are you so special that we should waste our time on you?
In the US, this is a common question from most psychologists and therapists. On the one hand, insurance companies require a diagnosis code in order to pay for any treatment and the same is true for certain kinds of government assistance. On the other, being diagnosed with a mental health condition considered “serious” can trigger various consequences for employment (especially if it involves security clearances), court (particularly custody battles), and random social consequences from people (especially family) who still believe neurodivergence is something to be ashamed of.
Typically the person asking is trying to find out whether an official diagnosis would be helpful or harmful to you, so they know what to put on the billing or other paperwork without causing more harm than good. This is really better done in a conversation where they explain that than on a form where they don’t, though.