The statistics regarding the percent of children in the U.S. with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder have changed over time. Part of the difference is due to measurement methods. While the American Psychiatric Association state in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder (DSM-5) that 5 percent of children have ADHD, the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC), reports surveys of parents show that about 11 percent of children 4 to 17 years of age have ever been diagnosed with ADHD.
IGotThis, a new online and smartphone program for families with children who have ADHD focuses on helping parents manage their kids’ and family’s tasks. The app allows parents real-time oversight of their children’s success with task management via a dashboard without having to hover or nag. Tasks can be set up with subtasks, assigned to more than one family member, and can have recurring and custom schedules. Kids can receive timely task reminders on the smart app and tokens to be traded for agreed upon rewards for successful performance. Because self-esteem is often an issue among children with ADHD, both before and after diagnosis, an ongoing series of inspirational messages called ADDitives relevant to people with ADHD are sent as in-app notifications. Other features include task-planning wizards and location-based alerts that, for example, could remind any family member with the app that is near a grocery story to stop in and pick something up.
IGotThis was designed by a programmer who has children with ADHD. He is currently running a KickStarter campaign both to measure interest in the program and to fund final development and testing. Since kids with ADHD often have siblings and one or more parents with the disorder, the program can be used by the entire family. I have recently been diagnosed with Adult ADHD and it’s easy to see how IGotThis could be extremely useful for planning and keeping track of tasks both for myself and in conjunction with my non-ADHD wife.
