MSunderstood Cafe Roadshow to visit Tipperary Town Plaza to raise awareness of multiple sclerosis

MS Ireland will be bringing the MSunderstood Café Roadshow to Tipperary Town Plaza on Monday, 5 November as part of an Irish tour.

Following the success of the experiential Café in Dublin earlier this year, the Café has been adapted on a specifically designed bus to provide people in Tipperary with a unique insight into what it is like to live with multiple sclerosis (MS). 

MS Ireland hope the MSunderstood Café Roadshow will build on the support created by the pop-up experiential café.

The MSunderstood Café Roadshow is a coffee shop that includes experiential elements such as blurry menus, cumbersome mugs and chairs and uneven floors.   All beverages and food for sale will be priced at €1 each with all proceeds going to MS Ireland.

Chief Executive of MS Ireland, Ava Battles said: “MS Ireland are delighted to bring the MSunderstood Café Roadshow to Tipperary Town and show customers the true impact of MS by allowing them to experience just some of the symptoms that those living with the condition manage daily.

“We believe that by providing this insight we strengthen our message of the importance that people with MS should have access to the right treatment at the right time. Through this roadshow, we aim to raise awareness and hope the people of Tipperary will come along and show their support for this important campaign.”  

The MSunderstood Café Roadshow begins its 10-day Irish tour in Galway City on Sunday 4th November 2018, and will visit Tipperary, Clare, Limerick, Cork, Wexford, Wicklow and Dublin. MS Ireland invites those in any of the bus tour areas to come on board and experience what it is like to live with MS for just a small portion of their day.

One issue affecting people with MS that the roadshow will highlight is the urgent need for improved access to medicine and treatment for the management of the disease. Recent research revealed 82% of adults in Munster including Tipperary believe it is unacceptable that patients in Ireland have worse access to new and innovative medicines than patients in any other country in Western Europe.1 MS Ireland, in partnership with Roche, is calling for change and asking the Government to improve the market access system. A new website - PatientsDeserveBetter.ie - was launched earlier this year to help those affected by MS demand quick and better access to new medicine.

General Manager, Roche Ireland, Pierre-Alain Delley added: “Following the success of the MSunderstood Café, Roche and MS Ireland felt it was important to launch the roadshow to raise greater awareness of the impact of the disease.” He added, “All Irish patients need, expect and deserve quick access to new and effective treatments through a fair and sustainable system. Roche remains committed to collaborating to improve the system which is what patients urgently need.”