Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients in Ireland have the worst access to new and innovative medicines when compared with patients in all other countries in western Europe, MS Ireland has said.

According to the findings of a recent survey carried out on behalf of the charity, the vast majority of adults believe that it is unacceptable that patients in Ireland have worse access to medicines than their European counterparts.

Not surprisingly, most also believe that if a new medicine is able to improve a person's quality of life, or extend their life, it should be made available to them.

The urgent need to improve access to treatment for people with MS was highlighted at the opening of the MSunderstood Café in Dublin city recently. This experiential pop-up café aimed to give customers a small taste of the daily challenges and debilitating symptoms faced by people living with MS.

Everything in the café, including the menu and furniture, was designed to create a challenging experience. The aim of this was to give customers a unique insight into the lives of those living with MS. A video unveiled at the opening, which looks at the customer experience, can be viewed here.

"MS Ireland believes that people with MS should have access to the right treatment at the right time. This may seem like a very basic demand, and one that it would be hard to refuse, but the truth is that this is not the situation for many people in Ireland today. By opening the doors to the MSunderstood Café, we hope we have helped customers understand the reality of living with MS, and realise how crucial speedy access to treatment is for those affected," commented MS Ireland CEO, Ava Battles.

MS is a chronic disease of the central nervous system, which causes a gradual degeneration of the nerves. This results in a progressive deterioration in various functions controlled by the nervous system, such as vision, speech and movement.

Over 9,000 people in Ireland have the condition and three times more women than men are diagnosed with it.

MS Ireland's video on the MSunderstoof Café can be viewed here
For more information on MS Ireland, click here