Multiple Sclerosis: policy context

There are no government policy documents in Scotland that relate specifically to Multiple Sclerosis (MS). However, the Kerr report Delivering for Health (1,531Kb) (2005) recommends a systematic approach to managing long-term conditions and recommends that long-term condition management should be based on generic rather than disease-specific approaches.

The MS Society and the MS Research Trust have produced recommended standards for the care of people with MS (Multiple Sclerosis Society (1999)).

In England and Wales, the National service framework for long-term conditions (1,302Kb) (published in March 2005) focused on the needs of people with long-term neurological conditions and may provide a useful model for Scotland.

In November 2003, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) published guidelines for the Management of multiple sclerosis in primary and secondary care(152Kb).