MND Association calls for better support in Northern Ireland

Members of the Northern Ireland Legislative Assembly gathered at Stormont on 24 January 2023 to hear recommendations on how to provide greater support to people living with motor neurone disease (MND).

The event launched the MND Association’s report, The provision of care for people living with Motor Neurone Disease in Northern Ireland, to raise awareness of the lack of services available to people with MND in Northern Ireland and engage MLAs on what can be done to improve the situation.

Attendees included twelve MLAs, the Northern Ireland branch of the Association, people living with and affected by MND and leading health professionals.

All had the opportunity to hear first-hand from people living with and affected by MND as they described their experiences accessing the vital services they require.

Around 140 people in Northern Ireland are living with MND at any one time, which is a fatal, rapidly progressing disease that affects the brain and spinal cord. It can affect a person’s ability to walk, talk, eat and ultimately to breathe. A third of people die within a year of diagnosis and half within two years. There is no effective treatment and no cure.