European PANS and PANDAS event
We are proud to share that our CEO, Vicky Burford, and our Health and Policy Lead, Katy Hindson, have been invited to present at a major European event on PANS and PANDAS at the European Parliament in Brussels.
What is the event?
‘PANS and PANDAS: A bridge between science, healthcare and european policies’ has been organised by Associazione Genitori PANS PANDAS BGE, the Italian equivalent of PANS PANDAS UK, in collaboration with other patient organisations across Europe, including ours.
The event, which takes place on the 13th of May, will be attended by the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola and Olivér Várhelyi, European Commissioner for Health. It will bring together an alliance of PANS organisations from across Europe, alongside leading clinicians and scientists from the UK, Europe and the USA, with a shared goal of strengthening awareness, evidence, and policy action across countries.
Why is this so significant?
We have chosen to attend and present because this is such an important opportunity for collaboration and shared learning and we sincerely look forward to seeing collective progress for all the PANS communities across Europe.
Who else is going?
We are pleased to have been able to invite the ISCA team from the University of Exeter who undertook the NIHR funded PANS PANDAS Unveiled project to deliver their findings, and have also invited the UK Health Minister, Wes Streeting, to attend or to send a representative. Wendy Chamberlain, Chair of the PANS PANDAS APPG, has also written to request his attendance and we await a response.
Why is PANS PANDAS UK involved?
“Being invited to present at the European Parliament is an opportunity to ensure the experiences of UK families affected by PANS are heard at a European level. The conversations which will take place in Brussels about evidence, clinical practice and policy are directly linked to the work we are driving forward in the UK.
The insights and partnerships gained through this event will feed directly into our international conference, Perspectives on PANS. Together, these events reflect our commitment to turning shared learning into meaningful progress for children, families, and services here in the UK.” – Vicky Burford, our CEO.
What will the charity say?
Hosted at the European Parliament, the event will focus on building bridges between science, healthcare, and European policy. Vicky and Katy will be presenting some of the early findings from our recent Speak Up survey, alongside an overview of the policy work we are currently progressing in the UK.
