MS Service Appointments and Clinics

The MS Service runs appointments and clinics for different aspects of Multiple Sclerosis (MS).

Many of our clinics have waiting lists, some of which can be very long. We therefore ask that you please confirm and attend these appointments.

If for any reason you can't attend an appointment, please contact the MS Service helpline, in plenty of time, to enable this appointment to be offered to someone else. If you fail to attend an appointment, you will receive a letter, and this will advise if this appointment can be re-booked.

To confirm an appointment or to discuss anything else related to MS Service appointments, please contact the MS helpline on 0300 019 2362 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Please note that the MS Service does not manage neurologist appointments or neurologist letters. If you need to discuss anything related to your MS Neurologist, you should contact the Neurologist's secretary.

You need to contact the secretary for the hospital in which you saw the MS Neurologist. The contact details are:

Poole Hospital:

Dr CE Hillier 0300 019 2225

Dr SU Memon 0300 019 2225

Dr CHE Lim 0300 019 8706

Initial Assessment – for those new to the MS Service

One of the MS Practitioners (MS Nurse, Physiotherapist or Occupational Therapist) will spend one and a half to two hours getting to know you. They will discuss your MS and symptoms, and answer questions you may have about your diagnosis. The practitioner will go through a standard assessment, which ensures all areas are covered. This document is then used and updated at future MS review appointments.

Before your appointment, it may be helpful to think about and write down anything you wish to discuss with the MS practitioner. This may be questions that you have or things that may be worrying you.

The MS Trust has a useful webpage where they give advice on preparing for you appointments: Making the most of appointments | MS Trust

The first assessment will usually be at your home, but there may be times when we need to do it somewhere else. If this is the case, you would usually be offered an appointment at Poole Hospital.

Disease modifying drugs (DMDs) for a person with MS need to be agreed at a special DMD meeting, as per national requirements. DMDs may be discussed at your first appointment but it may be later if the meeting hasn't taken place.

MS Review

MS review appointments are normally offered annually. The MS Nurse or practitioner will usually go through your last MS assessment with you to see if anything has changed and to ensure that all areas are covered.

If there is anything you wish to cover in more detail, the nurse or practitioner will be happy to do this instead of fully reviewing your last assessment template with you, (this will mean that your record will not be updated for the areas not discussed and will therefore hold older information).

An MS review clinic appointment usually lasts 35 minutes. It may be helpful to think about and write down anything that you are worrying about and any questions you may have before you see your MS nurse.

The MS Trust has a useful webpage where they give advice on preparing for you appointments: Making the most of appointments | MS Trust

MS annual review clinics are held by video call or in face-to-face clinics. Telephone calls are not felt to be as effective as video consultations which is why these aren't offered or recommended.

Face to face MS review clinics are currently held in:

• Poole Hospital
• Royal Bournemouth Hospital
• Blandford Community Hospital
• Bridport Community Hospital
• Westminster Memorial Hospital (Shaftesbury)
• Westhaven Community Hospital (Weymouth)
• Portland Community Hospital
• Frederick Treves House GP Surgery (Dorchester)
• Puddletown GP surgery

We are only able to offer home visits for people who have very complex or advanced MS (specific criteria apply). Appointments for people with advanced MS may be conducted by our Advanced MS Champion (AMSC) (See Advanced MS Champion role on Welcome page.)

NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) guidance recommends that all people with MS have a comprehensive review at least once a year. If you feel that you do not wish to have a regular, booked review with the MS Service, please discuss this with one of the practitioners or contact the MS Service helpline.

Where appropriate, we can place you on our ‘SOS’ caseload which means that you won’t receive an appointment with the service but will still have access to our helpline services and can re-start the annual reviews at any stage. You will receive a letter from us annually seeing if you wish to book an appointment and reminding you of our contact details.

Please note, if you are on a disease modifying drug (DMD) it is a requirement that you have an appointment for review of this annually.

Disease Modifying Drug (DMD) Clinics

MS DMD education

DMD education sessions are usually conducted via video call where the MS Nurse/practitioner will go through the drug or drugs with you and answer any questions you may have.

It is useful to have a pen and paper, to be able to write yourself notes. If you are eligible for more than one DMD it may also be useful to download the MS Trust's DMD comparison chart which can be found here: Disease modifying drugs: comparison chart | MS Trust

These sessions may be held in a group format where there is more than one person to be educated on the same drug or drugs.

MS Nurse DMD follow-up

MS DMD follow-up clinic appointments are 15-minute appointments by video to review how you are getting on with your DMD, including any side-effects you may be experiencing. If you need to discuss symptoms of MS, please ask to be booked into a review clinic as these can’t be addressed in the short DMD clinic consultation slots.

For your safety you must attend all disease modifying drug (DMD) review appointments with the team and consultant, as per national requirements and safety protocols. If you don't attend these appointments your treatment may be stopped.

For more information on DMDs and safety monitoring please see DMD section.

Occupational Therapy (OT) Appointments

The MS Occupational Therapy team currently provides face to face clinics in Poole Hospital.

In some cases, where people are unable to attend an outpatient clinic, a home or workplace visit may be offered (specific criteria apply).

They also provide video appointments for things like fatigue management and advice relating to work.

MS OTs will usually follow up treatment with a review over the phone.

It is helpful to come prepared to your OT appointment and write down any questions you may have.

See MS Specialist Occupational Therapists section for more information.

Physiotherapy Appointments

The MS Physio team currently holds face to face clinics in:

• Poole Hospital
• Blandford Community Hospital
• Weymouth Community Hospital
• Christchurch Hospital

In some cases, where people are unable to attend an outpatient clinic, a home visit may be offered (specific criteria apply).

They also provide video and telephone appointments, usually as a follow-up, if appropriate.

Before you attend your MS Physio appointment, it would be good to think about what you would like to achieve from your session or if you have any goals.

If you have any orthotic devices or splints that you wear, or walking aids that you use, it is good to bring them with you. It is also better to wear clothes that are easy to move in, such as loose trousers or shorts.

See MS Specialist Physiotherapists section for more information.

Other Appointments

The MS Service offers some specialist clinic appointments. These are usually held by video or telephone call. These include:

• Pre-conception clinics
• Pregnancy clinics
• Sex and Intimacy clinics

The MS Service often links with other services and professionals. You may be referred to other services and organisations to help you live well with MS and manage your MS symptoms.

Appointment confirmations and cancellations

• Our clinics are very busy, and we have a limited number of clinic slots available, so please make sure you attend your appointments.
• Please confirm your appointment by leaving a message on the answer phone or emailing us as soon as you can.
• If cancelling, please give as much notice as you can to enable us to offer this appointment to someone else.
  
  Please let us know why you are cancelling and whether you need the appointment to be rebooked. This will then be looked at when the next round of bookings are made.
  
  Due to the number of calls we receive, we are unable to ring back regarding these types of queries, but please be assured that your appointment will be rescheduled as able.
  
  We have limited availability and there could be a long wait before you will be offered another appointment.
• For your safety you must attend all disease modifying drug (DMD) review appointments with the team and consultant, as per national requirements and safety protocols. If you don't attend these appointments your treatment may be stopped.
  
  See DMD section for more information.