Healthcare professionals' knowledge of motor neurone disease

Healthcare professionals have a professional duty to provide patients with accurate information in order to assist in managing their illness. This may be more difficult with an uncommon illness, such as motor neurone disease (MND), as many healthcare professionals may feel poorly informed about the illness themselves. This study set out to survey the level of knowledge and understanding about MND among a group of 100 healthcare professionals who had personal experience of managing the care of a person with MND. The value of the MND nurse specialist and the Motor Neurone Disease Association as sources of information were highlighted. There was evidence of active information-seeking about MND among all professional groups. However, while many respondents felt that their knowledge of the disease processes in MND and their own profession's role in the management of the condition was good, 57% of respondents felt that their current level of overall knowledge about MND was inadequate.