ADHD and the persecution of Nolte and Orchard

Why the fight by two men has changed the lives of Aussies with ADHD

Incapacitated through pain and a debilitating back injury, David Nolte is in a race against time.  

If not for anything, he’s keen to recapture his busy life and emerge from the despair of uncertainty.

But its more than that – Nolte wants to continue lobbying for ADHD.

The former Deputy Lord Mayor of Melbourne and pharmacist, now spends his days undertaking an extensive rehab program – striving to regain full mobility of his legs and back. 

Twelve-months ago, Nolte underwent crucial back surgery, and if he hadn’t, paraplegia would’ve been inevitable.  

Recovery is a challenge, and while it’s just another for Nolte, it’s the intensity of his rehab that’s been more emotionally draining than physically taxing.  

Nolte’s a fierce competitor. His desire to be done with the daily grind of rehab, and the facilitating boredom it creates - is what he’s keen to escape.

He’s champing to get back to advocating for the thousands of Australians who have ADHD, especially indigenous Australians in remote communities - unable to access support, and the challenges they endure.

That’s what’s fuelled Nolte’s passion and years of advocacy.

As the last elected member of the Pharmacy Board of Victoria, Nolte wants to bring about change - to lobby for the repair of a broken health system which has ignored Australians with ADHD, because professional arrogance and ignorance has hindered real opportunity for treatment and acceptance for Australians with it.

Most healthcare professionals have a poor understanding of ADHD despite it being one of the most widely researched cognitive disorders.

Half of adults with ADHD seek help from mental health professionals, yet four out of five of who present for treatment aren’t identified as having it.

ADHD is a persistent neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by difficulties with inattention, hyper-activity and impulsivity.

Sceptics commonly claim symptoms of ADHD are observable in most people. What they fail to understand is ADHD is only diagnosed if the severity of symptoms causes significant impairment in a person’s day-to-day life.

At 67, Nolte’s very active, but his injury has set his aim for greater recognition by government and media of ADHD back.

Now his race although stymied, is to return to trudging the halls of power and strategize with his advisors to get ADHD recognised as a behavioral condition and build on the lack of services for adults who have it.  

Since 2007, Nolte’s been on a mission to have Australia’s government rethink its attitude on ADHD.

And it’s his desire to create change, that’s seen him ruffle feathers and incur the wrath of Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).

Nolte’s pursuit has blackened a few eyes and put noses out of joint.

His awkward take no prisoners approach to challenge the establishment, has regularly landed him in trouble - a price he says, “is well worth it.”

According to Nolte, the medical establishment has operated as a cabal. “It’s allowed itself to be hijacked by ego and arrogance.”

“For so long Australians who’ve suffered with ADHD, have done so in silence - attributable to government and the medical establishment’s denial of its existence.”

“It’s been the government and medical establishment’s failure that’s in part to blame, for some Australians struggling with drug and alcohol abuse and crime,” Nolte says.

“The alcohol and drug abuse people with ADHD face arises because they’re self-medicating, but don’t know it.”

Unlike their international counterparts, Australian doctors struggle to diagnose ADHD, while psychiatrists refuse to accept its existence, and that Nolte says, “falls back to lack of training.”

The acknowledgement of ADHD’s existence has been gradual, and the dial for change is turning even further.

Nolte is also a sufferer of ADHD, and had he not advocated to raise awareness and lobby government to engage in the conversation, the dial may have turned even slower.

But while Nolte’s advocacy continues to pave the way, if not for the late Bill Orchard, psychiatrist and general physician, one of the very few doctors in Australia in 2007 to understand ADHD, the scenario could be very different.

Like Nolte, Orchard pushed for the recognition and treatment of ADHD as a condition.

He found it difficult to comprehend the medical establishment’s thinking ADHD was a condition that impacted only children, and when they turned 18, magically disappeared, manifesting into another condition.  

It was Orchard who diagnosed Nolte’s ADHD, and from there, both formed an unbreakable bond to bring about change.

As is with pioneers, jealousy and the politics of medicine reared its head, along with the threat of exposure due to incompetence was and continues to be met with resistance.

For Orchard, he endured ridicule and persecution while AHPRA suspended his license to practice in 2012.

It was a bitter fought battle Nolte and Orchard sustained, and one Nolte continues to fight for.

Weeks before Orchard’s death and years of extensive lobbying to have his practicing license reinstated, AHPRA finally did so, but not before Orchard suffered years of extensive persecution, ridicule and bullying.

AHPRA as it did throughout COVID, flexed its muscles and threatened doctors to keep quiet and toe the line on the Pandemic narrative.

With Orchard it did the same. But Orchard refused to acquiesce – and that begs the question, about AHPRA’s motives, legitimacy, behavior and who is setting policy and who is in control?

AHPRA’s gesture however was too little too late, and Orchard 82, died a broken man, filled with sadness, as bullying, and ridicule consumed the final years of his life.

Overzealous officialdom and persecution finally took its toll and Orchard passed away in 2014.

Nolte’s continued fight is also a tribute to Orchard’s legacy.

But more needs to be done, and the discussion surrounding ADHD now taking place is encouraging.

Some see it as transformational, Nolte on the other hand sees it as a step in the right direction.

Whether Nolte cares to acknowledge it, his 15-year quest, even though he says, “has still a long way to go,” is bearing fruit.

As awareness continues to grow throughout government and media, Universities are beginning to train medical students on how to recognise, treat and manage ADHD, but more needs to be done, especially around its impact on indigenous communities and drug addiction, alcoholism, and crime.

Nolte says, “it’s likely ADHD and the failure to address the problem is to blame for the many who may suffer from it.”

“Tackling adult ADHD in Australia requires the Federal Government to take a bold move.”

A move Nolte says, will upset certain the establishment, but address a problem that should’ve been addressed long ago.

“The federal government, have sat on their hands and have allowed the tail to wag the dog.”

“The time has come to revisit what happened in 1970 – where the Australian Government changed the Scheduling policy framework of psycho stimulants (Dexamphetamine and Ritalin).

The Scheduling policy framework and Scheduling handbook support the broader public health policy frameworks in Australia for both the quality use of human medicines and the safe use of chemicals.

At that time any medically licensed doctor could prescribe these medicines, leaving their prescription open for abuse.

According to Nolte, by changing the Schedule, the Federal Government unwittingly threw out the baby with the bath water, leading to an inability for adults with ADHD to be treated for a condition that is very real.

“Since then, Australians who have ADHD have found themselves trapped in a state of behavioral torment where for some, living life in free fall and unchecked has produced nothing but disaster.”

Amid all the challenges, skepticism and contention, Nolte still has a long race to run.