Here is a comprehensive list of the education events and opportunities that will support your continuous professional development - from webinars to conferences.
Click on a drop down to get more information about a particular event and as well as how to book or take part.
Please contact us at [email protected] if you have any queries about our education offering for health and social care professionals.
2023 Annual Stephen Hawking MND Lecture
Date: 21 November 2023
Time: 6-8pm
Venue: Online
Cost: Free
Effective advance care planning is the important theme of this prestigious event, which is being organised by the MND Association and the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT).
The lecture will be led by Professor Bee Wee CBE. Bee was National Clinical Director for Palliative and End of Life Care, NHS England from 2013 – 2023.
With thanks to the Hawking Foundation for funding this event.
Community of Practice Annual Network Event
This event is exclusively for members of the MND Professionals' Community of Practice, a peer led group of health and social care professionals encouraging and supporting the development of good care for people living with, or affected by, MND.
Supporting people living with MND through advance care planning: A role for the whole MDT - 9 October 2023
Date: Monday 9 October 2023
Time: 9.30am – 4pm
Location: National Conference Centre, Birmingham
Cost: £35 early bird rate until end of August, £50 thereafter
Following the tremendous success of the networking event last year we are pleased to advise booking is now open for this year's event.
Wonderful to see a group of experienced HSCP coming together with a common purpose. Thanks, a great day
Attendee at Networking Event 2022
Throughout the day you will follow Adam, a person living with MND, and his family’s journey with MND. In groups, led by experts representing the MDT, you will consider how to effectively approach the sometimes challenging process of advance care planning.
With national colleagues you will discuss and explore the significant things health and social care professionals, Adam, and his family might want to talk about at different stages in his disease progression. You will reflect on how you can best encourage and support the crucial thinking and decision making needed to ensure that best care takes place.
There will also be practical and discussion sessions during the day on:
- PEG and RIG insertion
- respiratory equipment
- orthotics
- equipment solutions
- safe exercise for people living with MND
- communication aids
- syringe drivers.
Places are available now at an early bird rate of £35 until August.
View brochure
If you are not yet a member of our Community of Practice, please join us.
This event is now fully booked. Please email [email protected] to be added to the waiting list.
Webinars
Pain Management for MND - 28 November 2023
Time: 11.00am – 12.30pm
Aim: To increase understanding of how pain may be experienced in MND and potential methods to treat it.
Objectives:
- to examine current practice for pain management in MND
- to evolve our understanding of pain in MND and how to alleviate it
- to explore current thinking and research about pain management and possible future developments.
By the end of the session participants will have:
- a more confident understanding of where and why pain occurs in MND
- been introduced to options for effective pain management
- an appreciation of emerging research and developments pain management for MND.
Speaker: Dr Rhys Roberts, Consultant Neurologist at Addenbrooke’s Hospital – Cambridge
The MiND B project – identifying and managing behavioural change in MND Identifying and managing behavioural change in MND: from the MiND-B to the MiNDToolkit – 30 January 2024
Time: 11.00am – 12.30pm
Aim: To introduce and explain i) the MiND-B, a tool to detect behavioural symptoms in MND, and ii) the MiNDToolkit, a novel online psychoeducational intervention to manage behavioural symptoms - and their application to practice.
Objectives:
- to increase awareness and understanding of the MiND-B assessment and its objectives
- to increase awareness and understanding of the MiNDToolkit intervention and its objectives
- to demonstrate how the use of an assessment (MiND-B) can lead to tailored support to carers (MiNDToolkit).
By the end of the session participants will:
- have an understanding of the MiND-B its role in clinical practice
- know how to administer and interpret MiND-B scores
- have an understanding of the future role of the MiNDToolkit in practice
- have considered how they might use their knowledge of behavioural changes, and tools such as the MiND-B, in their practice.
Speaker: Professor Eneida Mioshi, University of East Anglia
Anticipatory grief – the challenges presented by a progressive condition for people living with and affected by MND – 27 February 2024
Time: 11.00am – 12.30pm
Aim: To consider the nature and possible presentation of anticipatory grief in people affected by MND, and ways to support them.
Objective: To support HSCPs to recognise and respond effectively to presentations of anticipatory grief.
By the end of the session participants will have:
- a clearer understanding of what we mean by ‘anticipatory grief’
- a more confidence to identify when people are experiencing anticipatory grief
- an improved understanding of potential ways to support people affected by MND who are experiencing anticipatory grief.
Speaker: Carol Bradley, Advanced Clinical Practitioner and MND Care Coordinator
“If it affects one of us, it affects us all”: the Whole Family approach, effective support for a household living with a diagnosis of MND – 30 April 2024
Time: 11.00am – 12.30pm
Aim: To explore the Whole Family Approach when caring for people affected by MND.
Objectives:
- to introduce the Whole Family concept
- to explore the impact of the Whole family approach to people affected by MND
- to provide real world examples of the Whole Family approach in action
- to consider how the MDT can work together to deliver care using the Whole Family approach.
By the end of the session participants will have:
- an understanding of the Whole Family model
- an understanding of the impact the of the Whole Family model on patient and carer experience
- an appreciation of how the MDT can collaborate to deliver a Whole Family approach.
Speaker: Samantha Holden, MND Care Centre Co-ordinator
“You matter because you are you, and you matter to the end of your life” – dispelling the myths of hospice care (for people living with and affected by MND) – 16 July 2024
Time: 11.00am – 12.30pm
Aim: To develop increased understanding of the role of hospice care for people living with and affected by MND.
Objectives:
- to explore of the range of services available through hospice care
- to explore the role of hospice services in good patient centred care
- to develop understanding of how people living with and affected by MND can be supported to positively consider using hospice services
- to explain how to connect people living with and affected by MND with hospice services
- to explore how hospice care supports the MDT.
By the end of the session participants will have:
- an awareness of the types of care which may be provided by a hospice
- an understanding of how hospice services can be used to meet patient centred goals
- increased confidence to talk to people living with and affected by MND about hospice care – challenging the perception that it is a place to go to die
- an understanding of how to refer people living with and affected by MND to hospice services
- an appreciation of how the hospice fits with the wider MDT.
Speakers: Claire Stockdale, Palliative Medicine Consultant and Lisa Sievwright, MND and Neuropalliative Specialist Therapist
A focus on tube feeding in MND: current evidence, managing risks and exploring good practice – 26 November 2024
Time: 11.00am – 12.30pm
Aim: To develop increased understanding about the use of tube feeding for people with MND and the implications for provision of person-centred care.
Objectives:
- to develop understanding of how people with MND can be supported to make informed, patient centred decisions about gastrostomy placement
- to examine the role of tube feeding in the management of MND and its impact on people living with MND and their caregivers
- to develop an understanding of the enteral feeding methods and tube care
- to consider how the MDT can work together to improve outcomes and patient experience.
By the end of the session participants will have:
- an awareness of how to support people with MND with decision making regarding tube feeding
- an understanding of the role enteral feeding plays in the nutrition support of people with MND
- an understanding of the different feeding methods available and how these can be used to meet patient centred goals
- an appreciation of how the MDT can collaborate to ensure good patient outcomes from the use of tube feeding.
Speaker: Sean White, NIHR Clinical Doctoral research doctoral fellow, Shefield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Information and Knowledge Exchanges
Information and Knowledge Exchange events are exclusively for members of the MND Professionals' Community of Practice, a peer led group of health and social care professionals encouraging and supporting the development of good care for people living with, or affected by, MND.
Psychological Care for people living with MND - 26 September 2023
Time: 11.00 am – 1.00 pm
Optional breakout rooms for further discussion will be available after the event until 1:30pm
We have some interesting presentations focussing on this important area of care:
- Sub-optimal decisions and accepting these as a practitioner
Dr Rachel Woolrich, Principal Clinical Psychologist, the Oxford Psychological Medicine Centre.
As a practitioner, patients in your care may take what you consider to be sub-optimal decisions for their care. In this session Dr Woolrich will explore how best as a practitioner to recommend a direction of treatment or whilst not unduly influencing patient decisions. And how you can square acceptance of such decisions with the knowledge and conviction that you have provided best care. - Understanding the roots of psychological distress
Dr John Ashworth, Counselling Psychologist, South West Neuromuscular Operational Delivery Network, Bristol
Getting a diagnosis of MND is devastating and throughout its course the disease presents many more challenges – both physical and emotional. In this session Dr Ashworth examines some commonly experienced stressors and explores how as practitioners you can provide support, including when your patient expresses thoughts of suicide.
As usual there will be lots of opportunity to discuss what you have heard and explore how it could be useful to your practice.
Workshops
A workshop is a brief, intensive educational program focussing on techniques and skills delivered to a relatively small group of people. Workshops are usually delivered face to face, but with careful planning could be online. The features of a workshop are that they:
- pass on knowledge and instruction around a specific skill set
- provide significant real time opportunities for participants to practice the skills being taught
- wherever possible will have some form of formal accreditation for the skills being passed on.
We use our MND Association workshops support when a key skill deficit has been identified and it is appropriate for the Association to make a response. The aim, as with all of our education provision, is to supplement existing health and social care training with MND-specific content to enhance professionals’ understanding of the disease and how to provide the best possible support. In a workshop this enhancement is very practical with clear links to practice.
Respiratory failure in MND: Secretion management and airway clearance - 7 November 2023 (Newcastle)
Date: 7 November 2023
Time: 10am-3:30pm (registration and coffee from 9:30am)
Cost: £50 View Events Cancellation Policy
Location: Newcastle United Football Club, St James Park, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE1 4ST
Aim: to introduce non respiratory specialist members of the MDT to secretion management and airway clearance.
Objectives:
By the end of the session you will:
- be better able to identify the presenting problems may be when cough augmentation is indicated
- have been introduced to manual methods of secretion clearance including the Lung Volume Recruitment technique
- be able to explain secretion clearance and cough assistance techniques in order to support the people with MND in their care and prepare them for the procedures
- have been introduced to some of the pharmacological options for secretion management
- have had an opportunity to explore case studies and through knowledge application and discussion identify the presenting problem and the appropriate action to take.
Outline of the sessions:
An introduction to cough assessment – getting useful results
In this session you will be introduced to the methods of assessing the cough of someone with MND, and how the results may be interpreted, to establish where the secretions are and what the appropriate action might be.
Interpreting cough assessment results – what are the presenting problems?
In this session you will be led through 2 patient case studies tracking the assessments carried out and results from them. As a group along with session leaders you will explore the results and agree what they are telling you.
Treatment options for secretion management
Using the case studies you were introduced to in the last session you will be introduced to the various options and solutions for secretion management both manual and mechanical and any challenges that night arise from their use.
Hands on!
This is a practical session to give you an opportunity to see and try out the various equipment such as suction machines, mechanical insufflator/exsufflator (MI-E) and lung volume recruitment bags, that has been referred to throughout the day.
Panel
In this final interactive session you will be provided with further case studies. As a group you will have an opportunity to consider and discuss each patient and, using what you have learned, reach a conclusion about what you believe to be the presenting problems for each. The consideration of each case will be supported through interaction with a panel of experts made up of the presenters from throughout the day who will explore the issues and considerations further and answer any questions.
Respiratory failure in MND: Secretion management and airway clearance - 21 November 2023 (London)
Date: 21 November 2023
Time: 10am-3:30pm (registration and coffee from 9:30am)
Cost: £50 View Events Cancellation Policy
Location: National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO), Society Building, 8 All Saints Street, London N1 9RL
Aim: to introduce non respiratory specialist members of the MDT to secretion management and airway clearance.
Objectives:
By the end of the session you will:
- be better able to identify the presenting problems may be when cough augmentation is indicated
- have been introduced to manual methods of secretion clearance including the Lung Volume Recruitment technique
- be able to explain secretion clearance and cough assistance techniques in order to support the people with MND in their care and prepare them for the procedures
- have been introduced to some of the pharmacological options for secretion management
- have had an opportunity to explore case studies and through knowledge application and discussion identify the presenting problem and the appropriate action to take.
Outline of the sessions:
An introduction to cough assessment – getting useful results: In this session you will be introduced to the methods of assessing the cough of someone with MND, and how the results may be interpreted, to establish where the secretions are and what the appropriate action might be.
Interpreting cough assessment results – what are the presenting problems?
In this session you will be led through 2 patient case studies tracking the assessments carried out and results from them. As a group along with session leaders you will explore the results and agree what they are telling you.
Treatment options for secretion management
Using the case studies you were introduced to in the last session you will be introduced to the various options and solutions for secretion management both manual and mechanical and any challenges that night arise from their use.
Hands on!
This is a practical session to give you an opportunity to see and try out the various equipment such as suction machines, mechanical insufflator/exsufflator (MI-E) and lung volume recruitment bags, that has been referred to throughout the day.
Panel
In this final interactive session you will be provided with further case studies. As a group you will have an opportunity to consider and discuss each patient and, using what you have learned, reach a conclusion about what you believe to be the presenting problems for each. The consideration of each case will be supported through interaction with a panel of experts made up of the presenters from throughout the day who will explore the issues and considerations further and answer any questions.
Masterclasses
These live events cover key areas of good MND care in detail, and provide you with a significant opportunity to learn from and interact with subject specialists. Some of these one day events take place face-to-face, and others are virtual.
Numbers for the masterclasses are limited to ensure that participants receive the depth opportunity expected in a learning opportunity of this type. People have found them interesting and challenging.
On completion of a masterclass you will receive a certificate of participation for your CPD record.
The subjects offered are chosen based on the feedback we receive through an annual survey of health and social care professionals we distribute through our Education newsletter and on information we get from our partner professional organisations.
Let’s talk about end of life in MND - 16 October 2023
Time: 10am – 4pm
Cost: £40 View events cancellation policy
Date: 16 October 2023
Location: Online delivery via Zoom
Aim: To help health and social care professionals gain confidence in discussing death, dying and advance care planning with people with MND.
By the end of the one-day masterclass, participants will:
- understand the benefits and challenges of offering opportunities to discuss dying
- understand what happens as MND progresses and how patients might die
- have increased confidence in initiating conversations about end of life
- understand advance care planning and resources to support this.
Facilitators:
- Dr Idris Baker - Consultant in Palliative Care at Ty Olwen Hospice, Morriston Hospital Swansea
- Becky Whittaker – Educator and Coach Palliative and End of Life Care, Communication Skills Trainer
Book your place
A conversation with...
The ‘Conversations with...’ series will give you an opportunity to listen to subject matter experts being interviewed on Zoom, using questions submitted by you. They focus on subjects of expressed interest from the professional community, or topical issues, and are run as conversation between a host and subject specialist.
The aim, as with all of our education provision, is to supplement existing health and social care training with MND-specific content to enhance professionals’ understanding of the disease and how to provide the best possible support. In a Conversation with this enhancement is to have specific questions to help develop or clarify practice answered.
No need to book – just drop in using the links provided.
Conversation with... MND Association financial and equipment support services - 3 October
Time: 12:30pm - 1:00pm
Find out what support the MND Association can provide. In this session Pauline Matheson-Marks, Head of National Care at the Association will answer questions about the various grants and equipment services that the MND Association can provide for people living with and affected by MND. And how to apply for them.
Join Zoom Meeting: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89826251500?pwd=WExuSUJsTDNUd1c3Z2l3cVlsTDFndz09
Meeting ID: 898 2625 1500
Passcode: MNDAHoC
If you would like any specific question answered during the session, please send these to [email protected]
Conversation with... an MND Network Coordinator - 22 November
Time: 12:30pm - 1:00pm
In this session Caroline Bidder, MND Network Coordinator, Swansea Bay will answer questions about how an MND network operates, what makes this dispersed model of care the appropriate one, and the impact it has on people living with and affected by MND.
Join Zoom Meeting: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88570488079?pwd=OFUydHNnT0c4cEhaNmRTYncxbG9iQT09
Meeting ID: 885 7048 8079
Passcode: MNDCWCC
