I have a son, so I can appreciate what you say, and I can only hope and pray that our pediatricians would have as much insight if we were to find ourselves in the same predicaments. But my argument is that Ritalin is being abused as a social engineering tool by feminist run school bureaucracies. The eveidence to back this up is overwhelming. Referrals for medication should not come from teachers or social workers.
The positive effects of certain stimulants, including caffeine, on boys who have so much excess energy that they are literally climbing the walls and harming themselves are well researched and proven. That kids are being prescribed drugs like Prozac given the absence of studies of its effects on children, is a little troubling though.
There is also the scam aspect of Ritalin/ADD ADHD. I believe that SSI and other benefits are available to "poor" families whose kids are "diagnosed" with ADD ADHD. Just another angle of the system for them to work.