What's new

Hampshire Neurological Alliance, General Meeting 7th October

The recent formation of the Hampshire Neurological Alliance was an important step in achieving improvements in care and treatment for people with long term neurological conditions such as MS. The HNA has periodic meetings for members and others interested in their work. For further details of the HNA and how to attend the next meeting see Upcoming Events.

Celebrity Cricket Coaching Day, 2nd November at the Southampton Rosebowl

Don't miss this unique opportunity.
An ideal day out for anybody interested in cricket – adults and children alike – an ideal birthday or early Christmas present!
See Upcoming Events.

Wilts, Hants & Islands Region, Annual Conference, 15th October

Booking is now open for this year's annual conference to be held on the 15th October in Basingstoke. For more information on the programme, venue and how to book, see Upcoming Events.

Wilts Hants & Islands Region Boundary Changes

Many members in the region will already be aware of the changes that are scheduled for the region later this year. For details of the impact of these and the reasons for implementing them see About the WH&I Region

Computer and Internet Training for Disabled People

Although normally based in London, the charity U Can Do IT now have a volunteer in north Hampshire who may be able to help PwMS with general IT and Internet training as well as specialised matters such as voice controlled software. For more information and contacts see the U can do IT website.

Where to Find Disabled Parking Bays

Have you ever wondered when going somewhere you are unfamiliar with whether you will be able to find a disabled parking bay? You may find one or other of the following information sources useful:

Five years on, NHS still failing MS patients

A survey of services for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) by the Royal College of Physicians' Clinical Effectiveness and Evaluation Unit (CEEu) and the MS Trust shows that the NHS is still failing to implement the 2003 The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines on the management of MS patients. For further details of this survey, see the MS Trust news article.

WHIstlestop Now Available for Download

If you haven't received the Spring/Summer issue of WHIstlestop by post then you can download it on the Newsletter page. This issue is of particular interest as it is the last from the Wilts Hants and Islands region before it gets restructured. There is information about this restructuring, about John Crawley's benefit year, news from branches and a comprehensive list of upcoming events in the region.

Carers Emergency Card

What would happen to the person you care for if you were suddenly taken ill or had an accident while away from home? How would you organise alternative arrangements at such short notice, if you didn’t have phone numbers you needed, or in an emergency situation? The Carers Emergency Card is designed to help in such situations. For more information see MS Society Carers Emergency Card.

Kings College Carers Study - Update on original item posting

If you feel that as a carer you are not getting the help and support you need, or believe that services could and should be improved, you can make your views known by contributing to a questionnaire study that is investigating this very problem.

A team from King’s College London has been commissioned by the Department of Health to carry out this study across the UK as part of the Government's National Service Framework (NSF) for Long-term (Neurological) conditions.

We are particularly keen to hear from you if you are caring for more than one person, maybe young children or an elderly relative as well as the person with MS.

If you decide to take part the team will post you a set of questionnaires to fill in and return. Most questions involve ticking a box, circling a number or writing a short sentence.

They will then telephone you at a time convenient to you to help with any questions you were unsure about, and to give you the opportunity to tell them about any problems that were not covered.

If you would like to know more, you can:

- Phone Diana Jackson or Dee Howley: 0207-848-5582 or 0207-848-5418
- E-mail the Research Team.
- or download information and a reply slip by clicking the link below.
Kings College Survey Flyer (79 kb) [doc]

MS research: a request for help

Do you have MS and are of Maltese origin?

A recent study published in the medical journal Neurology (January 2008) has shown that prevalence of MS in Malta is extremely low compared to neighbouring Sicily. Whilst genes undoubtedly play a role in the low levels of MS in Malta, it is likely that the environment has a significant effect on whether people go on to develop MS.

For more details on how you can help in research into this interplay between environment and genetic influences on MS see the Research Links page.
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