Volunteersneeded forbusyMScentre
SINCE 1993, the Multiple Sclerosis North West Therapy Centre in Sligo has been a delivering essential care to those who live with Multiple Sclerosis ( MS).
The organisation provides a number of services through its centre in Ballytivnan, and since opening 23 years ago it has gone from strength to strength. Nowadays, it provides day care services for around 300 people from eight counties around the region, and approximately 120 patients are weekly users.
It has blossomed from an initial idea in the early 1990s to a top- class facility in 2016 with the voluntary spirit still at the very core of its delivery.
“We provide a day care service, not a sitting down service,” says Tamara Gormley, service manager at the Ballytivnan centre. It is very important to people with MS and the services we provide are essential. We are unique in that there is no other place like this in the North West and we have people from eight counties coming to us.”
The services provided by the centre include physiotherapy, oxygen therapy, counsellor services and holistic therapy.
“It is a day service, so those who come in are given a series of appointments for the day – their first appointment may be physio or pilates, then they may access a counsellor, go to a holistic therapist or get a massage.
“We also provide a bus service four days a week, and have access to the HSE for referrals. We are very connected to the community as well and we collaborate with local voluntary and community groups, who provide staffing to us for different projects.”
One of those who uses the centre at Ballytivnan is Carney resident Yvonne Roache. According to Yvonne, the unique services provided by the North West Therapy Centre are invaluable to her and others who live with MS.
“It is an absolutely fantastic service,” she says. “I use is for physio, and it is a great service to have on our doorstep. I go in once a week, and everyone from care assistants to the physios to the Tamara [ manager] is so welcoming. You go in to the reception area before your appointment and you can have a cup of tea and sit to chat with other patients.”
That is also a major plus of the Therapy Centre – the fact that patients can go into an environment where they can talk to other people with MS, and discuss various remedies that work to help alleviate the effects of the disease.
Yvonne said: “It isn’t just for the treatment, but it is brilliant to be able to sit and talk to other patients, and get to know them. You can talk about different things that work for different people with MS, and the staff as well are just brilliant.
They will do something for everyone, no matter how bad someone’s condition might be.”
In order to create another environment in which those with MS can converse, a MS meet- up group has been in existence for the past two years and they meet every Saturday in Costa in Sligo from 12pm to 1pm to have a relaxed chat.
Much of what the Therapy Centre relies on is that community spirit. Though they receive some funding, generating money to help continue the services is a major undertaking and in an effort to help raise further funds, a new charity shop will open in Ballymote in August to complement the existing one along the Wine Street Car Park in Sligo.
The centre is always looking for new volunteers to help out with various aspects of the operation including the charity shops, and those already involved feel it is a worthwhile exercise.
“We employ 12 people, and then we subcontract other services out such as physio and things like that. For those with MS who come in, the centre is very much part of their lives and for their families as well. They are a great help with fundraising, because they see first- hand what we do and the benefits of it which is very important, “Tamara comments.
In 2014, after some ten years of fundraising and planning, the North West Therapy Centre opened a respite facility on the Strandhill Road which has been a major plus for those with MS. ‘ Woodhaven’ is an accessible and supported holiday facility of the Therapy Centre, and offers an ideal location for those with MS to go on a short- break and offers a ‘ home away from home’ for those looking for a holiday in comfortable surroundings.
Tamara says: “The closest respite facility is Dublin. If you have MS and suffer from fatigue or imbalance, a trip to Dublin is a big deal so it is great to have it here. There is also a conference room for local groups to use.”
Yvonne has also benefitted from using the Woodhaven building, and says it has been a revelation since its opening.
“I’m only out the road, but I had a relapse in February and spent five nights in hospital so I went to Woodhaven for a few days, just for some peace and quiet.
“It is great to have it so close by, to go somewhere with peace and quiet. It really is a beautiful place and a fantastic facility.” 23 years on from its opening, the MS North West Therapy Centre has certainly achieved its ambition of helping those with MS in every possible way.
For more information or to volunteer, visit www. mstherapycentre. ie.