Multiple Sclerosis - A serious disease that needs serious action in Manitoba

On Saturday, I attended a major conference on Multiple Sclerosis in Winnipeg. The conference brought together individuals with MS, family members of those with MS, and health care professionals caring for those with MS.

There are a lot of people in Manitoba with Multiple Sclerosis - I've been told the number is around 3,500, though there appears to be some debate over the precise figure. Estimates range between 3,000 and 4,500. The higher number may reflect, in part, the inclusion of those with mild forms of Multiple Sclerosis may be missed in the statistics.

Whatever the precise number is, Multiple Sclerosis is a major disease in our province and needs to be treated as such. At the conference, we heard that the lifetime cost to our health care system is more than $2 million per person with Multiple Sclerosis. Even if the number of patients with Multiple Sclerosis in Manitoba was as low as 3,000, this means a cost to our health care system of $6 billion. We need to make sure as a province that we are doing all we can to give the best possible quality of life for those with Multiple Sclerosis, and to ensure that we have a very cost effective system where dollars are spent wisely.

I want to congratulate the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada, Manitoba Division for their effort in hosting this important and informative conference.

Particular thanks are due to President Norman Velnes (photo), to Resource Coordinator and Program Planner Darell Hominuk, to Director of Client Services Tracy Brown, to Client Services Assistant Judy Hermiston, to Susan Hologroski Manger, Client Services, to Ellen Karr Cient Services Coordinator and to Nadine Konyk, Rural Client Services Coordinator.

Sadly the new Minister of Health, Theresa Oswald, was not present. I would have thought she would jump at the chance to get fully involved and up-to-date on such a serious disease by attending at least a portion of the conference.