ME care services get £8.5m cash boost

Care services for chronic fatigue and ME sufferers have been boosted today following a £8.5 million cash injection announced today by Health Minister Jacqui Smith.

It is hoped that the investment will help establish centres of expertise and facilitate access to specialist assessment diagnosis and advice on clinical management to patients, families and health professionals.

Speaking at a Chronic Fatigue Unit in Essex, the minister said: "The causes are still not fully understood and this investment will enable the NHS to set up centres of expertise to develop clinical care, support clinical research and expand education and training programmes for health care professionals."

An implementation group will be set up to oversee the service development work and Professor Anthony Pinching, (Associate Dean for Cornwall, Peninsula Medical School and former Deputy Chair of CFS/ME Working Group) will chair the group.

As an initial step, health organisations will be invited to bid for development funds in July to set up specialist centres. These new centres will initially support local community teams to provide a broad spectrum of expertise and integrated care packages to people with CFS/ME. Prof Pinching voiced his "delight" at the move.

"I am very keenly aware of the very large gaps in service provision for CFS/ME across the country, which leaves many patients, carers and frontline professionals without support or guidance," he said.

"We will ensure that appropriate new local services are established, supported effectively by larger centres with expertise and experience. As well as providing diagnosis and treatment, the new services would assist with professional training and could also create a valuable clinical research network."

The £8.5 million will be released to the NHS from April 2004 and is for 2004 to 2006.

Action for ME has been awarded a Department of Health grant of £177,300 over the next three years, to support the development of clinical networks.

(GMcG)