PANS PANDAS UK

Major Research Project on Fabricated or Induced Illness published

Major Research Project on Fabricated or Induced Illness published

It is an honour to have our work on Fabricated or Induced Illness (FII) referenced in the recently published findings of a large-scale research project into the prevalence and impact of allegations of FII.

This research, based at the School of Law at the University of Leeds, makes for sobering reading indeed. It highlights a widespread and significant increase in the numbers of parents of disabled children being inappropriately accused of FII, with disabled parents being four times more likely to be accused than non-disabled parents. Half of the allegations were made after a parent carer had made a complaint about the relevant public body. The principal finding of the report is that these accusations cause devastating and lasting trauma to both the families accused and their children.

The report found that the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health 2021 FII guidance is likely to give rise to a large number of ‘false positives’. Luke Clements, Cerebra Professor of Law and Social Justice at the University of Leeds, calls for ‘a radical overhaul of policy and practice in this field.’ The report can be read in full here.

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Glossary

  • ADHD
    Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
  • AE
    Auto-immune Encephalitis
  • ARFID
    Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder
  • ASD
    Autism Spectrum Disorder
  • CAMHS
    Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service
  • CBT
    Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
  • Dysgraphia
    difficulty writing by hand
  • EHCP
    Education, Health and Care Plan
  • Emotional Lability
    Rapid, and dramatic changes in mood (for example uncontrollable laughter to crying)
  • Enuresis
    wetting
  • GAS
    Group A Streptococcal infection
  • NHSE
    NHS England
  • NICE
    National Institute for Health and Care Excellence
  • OCD
    Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
  • PP
    PANS PANDAS
  • PPUK
    PANS PANDAS UK
  • PPN
    PANS Physicians Network
  • PPSG
    PANS PANDAS Steering Group
  • SENCo
    Special Educational Needs Coordinator
  • SIGN
    Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network to the glossary
  • Tic
    Sudden repetitive movement (motor tic) or sound (vocal tic) which is difficult or impossible to control