THE UK’s first National Blueprint for improving Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) services was celebrated at a reception in the Scottish Parliament and attended by local MSP Jamie Greene.

The event celebrated the publication of an important new initiative, which aims to improve services for the 26,000 people in Scotland living with IBD held on Tuesday, June 28 in Holyrood.

The National Blueprint is the first of its kind in the UK and is designed to ensure that people living with IBD in Scotland receive equitable, timely and appropriate care, thereby improving their health, and ability to participate in education, work, social and family life.

It sets out the key components of an IBD service for Scotland, drawing on real life experience and examples, which would lead to better care and a better quality of life for people living with IBD.

Local list MSP Jamie said: “I myself suffer from a stomach condition for which I take daily medication and understand more than ever the effects that stomach conditions have on your life especially when people say “but you don’t look ill?”.

“There is so much taboo about matters pertaining to responding to the call of nature that we as a society have made it impossible to be open and frank when it comes to debilitating conditions which cause so much anxiety and stress in everyday situations.

“We should as a society try and be not just sympathetic but practical when it comes to helping people in awkward or embarrassing situations.” For more information, visit www.crohnsandcolitis.org.uk