The fundamental principles of the NHS, when it was launched by the Minister of Health Aneurin Bevan on 5 July 1948, were that healthcare should be free, comprehensive and available to all at the point of delivery and irrespective of income. It could be expected that these would apply to all medical diagnoses, but when it comes to mental health and developmental conditions such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) that are still perceived as controversial, the path to diagnosis and treatment remains a thorny one.