Family planning and contraception in people with multiple sclerosis: perspectives for obstetricians, gynaecologists, and other health care professionals involved in reproductive planning.

Purpose: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is often diagnosed in people of reproductive age. However, family planning counselling is not always integrated within MS care. Decisions on family planning can be further complicated by potential side effects associated with several disease-modifying therapies.

Summary of Research: Collaboration Between Healthcare Professionals and People with Multiple Sclerosis to Develop Communication Tools to Improve the Standard of Multiple Sclerosis Care.

This is a summary of a previously published paper: Joint Healthcare Professional and Patient Development of Communication Tools to Improve the Standard of MS Care. It describes a collaboration between people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) and healthcare professionals (HCPs) to identify challenges in multiple sclerosis (MS) care and design tools to improve communication during consultations.

Disease Progression in Multiple Sclerosis: A Literature Review Exploring Patient Perspectives.

Purpose: Multiple sclerosis (MS) prognosis is often uncertain. This literature review considers patients' understanding of, and perspectives on, MS progression to better comprehend the unmet needs of people with MS (PwMS), in order to improve treatment adherence and quality of life (QoL).

Methods: Literature searches for peer-reviewed papers concerning patient perspectives on the progression of MS and comparable conditions, published between January 2000 and January 2020, were conducted.

Unmet needs, burden of treatment, and patient engagement in multiple sclerosis: A combined perspective from the MS in the 21st Century Steering Group.

Background: Patient engagement is vital in multiple sclerosis (MS) in order to optimise outcomes for patients, society and healthcare systems. It is essential to involve all stakeholders in potential solutions, working in a multidisciplinary way to ensure that people with MS (PwMS) are included in shared decision-making and disease management. To start this process, a collaborative, open environment between PwMS and healthcare professionals (HCPs) is required so that similarities and disparities in the perception of key areas in patient care and unmet needs can be identified.

Achieving patient engagement in multiple sclerosis: A perspective from the multiple sclerosis in the 21st Century Steering Group.

While advances in medicine, technology and healthcare services offer promises of longevity and improved quality of life (QoL), there is also increasing reliance on a patient׳s skills and motivation to optimize all the benefits available. Patient engagement in their own healthcare has been described as the 'blockbuster drug of the century'. In multiple sclerosis (MS), patient engagement is vital if outcomes for the patient, society and healthcare systems are to be optimized.