#GuestPost: taking the MS Society to task

Has the MS Society been caught navel gazing? #GuestPost 

I have in the past criticised the MS Society over various issues. It was therefore surprising when one of our patients complained to me about them as well. I think the issue he has raised is important enough to be discussed in public and I therefore asked him to prepare a guest post.  


MS Society. Together we walk

On 24th September 2017 the MS Society is organising a sponsored walk. On their website they state ‘This September hundreds of MS Superstars, our friends and families, will join forces in London to take in the sights and raise funds to stop MS. Will you join us?’

There will be walks of 3 different lengths, 6km, 10 km and 20 km. The two shorter walks are fully accessible

In October 2016 the MS Society published the following:

Exercise is known to have a positive impact in MS. As well as promoting general health, research has found that exercise can help manage fatigue and improve quality of life for people with MS. It can also improve particular MS symptoms, including cognitive changes, balance and walking.

So we are all agreed that exercise can help people with MS. The MS Society is organising a walk and they would like people to be sponsored and raise money for the MS Society.

I have one significant issue with ‘Together we walk’; I really enjoy taking exercise but I will be unable to participate. I suffer from secondary progressive multiple sclerosis and one of the problems of my MS is that I have serious foot drop. I cannot walk unaided. It takes me about 45 minutes to walk 1km which is my limit and I must use a rollator.

There are plenty of people with progressive MS who suffer from mobility issues and would love to take part in the walk. As well as participating they would like to achieve a goal. The sense of satisfaction in achieving a goal cannot be underestimated.

Surely it cannot be too difficult to organise walks of say 1km and 500m. This would allow people like me who suffer from progressive MS and have serious mobility issues to participate. We can raise money for the MS Society and achieve a goal. This is a win-win for everyone.

Yes I could go on my mobility scooter and complete a distance of between 6 and 20 km but that is not a challenge. Where is the sense of achievement?

Why has the MS Society taken it upon itself to discriminate against people who would like to raise money for the MS Society but are physically unable to walk more than a short distance? Why can’t I join in with the walk, be sponsored for walking an agreed distance?



I am Patrick Burke, I was diagnosed with RRMS in 1995 but I believe the symptoms started in 1972.The disease turned into SPMS in about 1999/2000. I took medical retirement in 2012 and setup the website Aid4Disabled in the same year. The website is the story of my MS since retirement and it also identifies a wide range of objects that are readily available and can improve quality of life. I am also a member of the Barts MS Advisory Group.


CoI: None

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