Elisabeth’s Corner: Message from the Managing Director

Dear Friends,

We are glad to get back to you with the latest news from Brussels, EMSP Secretariat and our EMSP members.

These past months have been marked by important developments from the European Union that reminds us of the importance of working together and remaining focused on our mission to improve the quality of life of people living with MS across Europe.

In September, the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker delivered his State of the Union address at the European Parliament. Should we be worried that health was not mentioned during that speech? The Commission is now working on a new strategy called “Health in all policies”, making health part and parcel of all policies instead of being its own separate subject; thus, giving health a lower visibility on the political agenda. The shifting priorities of the European Commission, Brexit negotiations coupled by other uncertainties are concerning. Therefore, EMSP will be closely monitoring new developments and influence changes to keep access to better healthcare and support for people with MS a priority.

Continuing a busy September, EMSP was present at the biggest event in health policy, the European Health Forum Gastein. This event gathers experts from the Public Health field from across Europe and offers a unique opportunity to link the work we are doing to major trends and initiatives involving renowned experts and providing insights for the definition for our overall strategy.

EMSP was also represented at the European Medicines Agency which offered an opportunity to promote the importance of the Patients’ registries initiative.

Additionally, we had the opportunity to finalise a Memorandum of Understanding with Caritas Norway. This new partnership will enhance our work in the field of disabilities and offer opportunities to develop further proposals to support national MS societies work in the future. We will keep you informed on developments on due time.

In other news, we can’t forget about the summer break! Madeleine Cutting, a dear MS supporter from Spain, shares her experience on how to deal with the impact of the heat as an MSer.
Do not miss the upcoming events organised by EMSP and its members. You will find them in the next session of this newsletter!

Finally, I am glad to introduce you to our new Communications and Membership Officer, Cherie Wee, who came from as far away as Canada, to join and support our Team! You can read more about her in this newsletter.

Wishing you a happy reading,
Elisabeth