Imagine you have a healthy active child 95th percentile. This child is smart , intelligent, very inquisitive. She likes to explore the world on her own terms. Rather than being led by adults, she wants to explore the surrounding especially when she knows it's safe and parents are watching her well being. She has special interest in doctors and school.

Imagine then she visits school for the first time and called a nuisance within a day or so. Imagine then she visiting a a doctor and being called Autistic, imagine pedestrian doing the same without really giving a chance for the toddler to settle down.

After going through with nursery and GP, I finally visited a pediatrician with specialization in child mental health. And guess what it turned out to be the worst experience of my life ever.

As soon as my daughter entered the room, true to her nature she started exploring the room. First she get on the examination table waiting to be examined and then proceed to look at other equipment drawings attention. So instead of trying to engage her, doctor who is supposed to be one of the London's best she just went ahead ignoring her completely and declared "She should pay attention to me? I think she has ASD."

Quite a surprise frankly!!

"But she is in unfamiliar environment and she is excited about doctors anyways so she is exploring."

"Nono at 3 she should not ignore. She is in unfamiliar environment. She should engage and speak in complex sentences."

"Well yes she speaks less but does that really make her autistic. She is imaginative, explores her environment. Do you still think she is on the spectrum?"

Doctor annoyed a little bit, "yes she shows symptoms of autism but it's too early to say. However, I would put her on the spectrum. Does she cuddle, show affection?"

"Yes, she cuddles and she understands emotions very well." Just then my daughter walk upto me sits in my lap and uses Amazon Kindle kids tablet she has and starts playing dress up game. A game in which she is tasked with grooming and dressing various characters.

"See, this is what I mean. She is not making the eye contact." Again repeat another items from the checklist.

Yes, but she is focussed on the game. She likes playing the game. She has been to a nursery for three days only before they declared, she is different and she needs help. Does you try to explore how she feels like. I thought engaging toddler is your job. As a trained professionals, you should be doing it better than us. But I kept silent. By this time conversation was fruitless. Amazing waste of time and money. Even when paid through insurance, still a waste. Moreover a moronic way of analyzing a toddler and assigning verdict. My daughter is happy, laughs, understand, is imaginative, react to emotions. How you can say she is Autistic?

Again no effort to put toddler at ease, absolutely no attention to her and I get another recital of the checklist.

Finally frustrated u ask her to fill the form with her verdict and close the transaction. A quick scribble with these lines: - Needs speech therapy - is very intelligent - possible ASD

Thanks you very much Doctor. You have the best job in the world. You can charge £400 for following a checklist. Why did I come here? I could have sent the completed checklist and you might have given the verdict over itself. There was no need to put us through the shenanigans. While my daughter pretends to be a doctor, it's you actually who is pretending to be one.