ACPIN conference: Physios should treat more neurological conditions

^{Fiona Jones, the outgoing president of ACPIN. Photo: Nathan Clarke}

Fiona Jones, who retired after four years in post, was speaking at the association’s international conference, held in London last week. Delegates heard the organisation had achieved a lot since its formation in the 1980s, and that it was now in a position to think about what the profession would look like in future. This included thinking about the range of patients it works with.

She said: ‘What do we mean by a neurological condition? Are we only interested in conditions like stroke, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s, or do we consider conditions like Down’s syndrome or dementia as conditions we can treat? It has always amazed me we don’t consider dementia a condition we can treat.’

Professor Jones told the conference that ACPIN had much to celebrate when it looked back at what it achieved, and that it could seem difficult to think about all the challenges ahead in the field of neurological physiotherapy. However, she said the key was to ‘harness the skills of those that use and work with our services’.

She called for neurological services to have ‘real and authentic stakeholder engagement’, and said physiotherapists had to ensure they worked to widen access to services, as well as challenging inequality.
Professor Jones’s successor as ACPIN president is Jane Burridge, who is professor of restorative neuroscience at Southampton University.