Training

Ataxia Training Days

The aim of Ataxia Training Days is to increase awareness of the ataxias among healthcare professionals.

These events are open to a variety of different healthcare professionals who work in various fields, from neurology to speech therapy. A typical training day attracts over 70 attendees, and a wide range of topics are presented by medical professionals in subjects such as genetic counselling, diagnosis, management and physiotherapy.

Upcoming Ataxia Training Days

Save The Date - Sheffield Ataxia Centre Study Day 2024

A national ataxia study day led by Sheffield Ataxia Centre. This event is a whole day programme open to UK neurology and allied specialty healthcare professionals.

Registration is free. If you wish to register, email sth.ataxia@nhs.net with the subject line ‘Ataxia Study Day 2024’.

Date: Friday 28th June 2024

Location: Sheffield Ataxia Centre, Department of Neurology, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Glossop Road, Sheffield, S10 2JF

For more upcoming training days, keep your eye on this page to find out when the next Training Day will be, or sign up to join Ataxia UK or our medical professional's registry to be notified.

Past Ataxia Training Days

Exeter

Our latest Ataxia Training Day took place in Exeter as part of Ataxia UK's Exeter Awareness Campaign that ran throughout June 2017. The feedback from delegates from across a range of fields was incredibly positive, which you can read below. You can find the flyer with venue details here and you can see the programme here.

Ataxia UK Trustee and South West Branch member Philip Griffiths released a report of the day, which will indicate the typical contents of an Ataxia Training Day.

For this event, Ataxia UK collaborated with ACPIN (Association of Chartered Physiotherapists with Interest in Neurology).

You can find below some presentations from that day, including talks on:

• Rehabilitation_and_physiotherapy_approaches_in_ataxia_by_Prof_Jon_Marsden
• Hearing_difficulties_in_ataxia_-_results_of_recent_research_with_FM_hearing_aids_by_Dr_Kai_Uus
• Research_updates_by_Dr_Julie_Vallortigara
• Ataxia UK's third edition of the Medical Guidelines by Dr Julie Vallortigara

Feedback

"A really informative and interesting day with knowledgeable informed presenters. I really valued the mix of patient and clinical presentations."

"Excellent course which increased awareness of the evidence base but also rich emotive talks from Sam and Anthony [Members of the South West Branch] were very inspirational."

Belfast
Another successful Ataxia Training Day was held in Belfast in February 2017. This event was organised jointly by Ataxia UK and the Northern Ireland Rare Disease Partnership. You can find the flyer here, and the full programme here. This event was approved by the Federation of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of the United Kingdom for 5 category 1 (external) CPD credits.

Feedback
92% of respondents at Belfast said the seminar will have an impact on the treatment of their ataxia patients. When asked about the beneficial aspects of the training day, one delegate said that it had:

"...increased my awareness and understanding of the different forms of ataxia. I now have reference points to help in my assessment and management of patients referred with the condition."

Manchester
One of our Ataxia Training Days, ‘Care of Ataxia Patients’ Study Day, was held in Manchester and was aimed at healthcare professionals caring for people with ataxia. Feedback on the event from those who attended was very positive, with 100% of attendees stating that it was either useful or very useful.

Feedback

"I found all the speakers and their content to be extremely useful. I particularly felt the event gave a well-balanced and up to date conference which will have a positive impact on future practice."