TiMS newsletter issue 23

Save the date for conference 2025 – Sunday 23 to Tuesday 25 March 2025.

TiMS have 50 bursaries at 80%, so don’t forget to book your place.

We are planning to mark 20 years of TiMS at conference 2025, so please join us as we celebrate this milestone!

I have been co-chair for 4 years. I have thoroughly enjoyed it and discovered so much. However, the TiMS constitution states that co-chairs have a tenureship of 3 years. My TiMS committee colleagues kindly voted for me to remain in post for another 3 years, 1 of which I have already served. 

I will now be able to continue to support Susan as our new co-chair following Michelle Davies standing down after 4 years - thank you Michelle for your excellent leadership over this period.

Whilst considering nominations for the next co-chair, we discussed how it can be a daunting role to step into. Therefore, TiMS have decided to write a job description for a vice chair and consider someone for this position a year before a current co-chair stands down. 

This enables the new vice chair to learn the ropes of the co-chair position and, all being well, assume the place of co-chair once available. As this trend continues, it means that there will always be an overlap of co-chairs to support each other.

Updates on this new role to follow in the next newsletter.

We are currently recruiting for more OTs, Dietitians and Speech and Language Therapists from around the UK to join our working group! We meet four times a year, with one of those meetings being face to face. If you would be interested in joining the working group, please contact therapistsinms@​mstrust.org.uk with your CV.

The MS Trust's strategy day on 27 September was a productive and positive one. As we look ahead to the MS Trust's future, we continue to implement our core values which hold information and health professionals at the core of the Trust's work. This includes supporting TiMS and UKMSSNA and the excellent work they do.

The listening project has been an insightful and informative piece of work. The project comprised of 15 questions, asking questions such as: 'what do you value about the work we do?' and 'what would you like to see from us moving forward?'

We received 877 responses. 

It is clear that many people value the up to date, reliable information we provide as well as the work we do in training and supporting MS professionals. Mapping our services across the UK from both the perspective of health professionals and patients is a key initiative which is already underway at the MS Trust.

The Labour Conference took place from 22 - 25 September. It was a great opportunity to network as well as consider the implications of governmental policies on the work we do. 

Read the Darzi report.

ECTRiMS was held in Copenhagen and ran from 18 - 20 September this year. It was an excellent event, with lots of opportunities to learn and share new research in the field of MS. The new McDonald Criteria and what this means for clinical practice was widely discussed. There were also insightful conference sessions on DMT management and what the new diagnostic criteria will mean for prescribing. 

The Multiple Sclerosis Trust has released a new report which highlights the impact of MS on travel and transport outside the home.

Our research shines a light on the significant and complex challenges facing people with MS when looking to travel outside their homes. We want to thank the 999 people with MS who shared their experiences in our survey.

Read the travel and transport report.

If you have a question about any aspect of managing MS, contact the working group and we will do our very best to answer it. 

If you would like more information about TiMS, the working group and to see the work we have done to date, click on TiMS in the Health Professions section on the MS Trust website.