About Us

The Primary Care and Community Neurology Society which is also the Person-Centred Neurosciences Society is a growing organisation of likeminded healthcare professionals, and partnering organisations including companies and charities who all share a desire to drive up the standard of services to improve neurology care across primary care and the wider neurology community

P-CNS has become the leading voice to support the connecting up of neurology care between Primary Care and the wider neurology community, which includes both heath professionals and non health professionals living with neurological conditions.

Our Vision

The P-CNS’s vision, which acknowledges the significance of learning through lived experiences, is to provide sustainable, consistent, and high-quality care and education services that consider and support the individual needs of the person so they can live well in the community with suspected or confirmed neurological conditions.

Our Mission

The P-CNS’s mission is to:

To support our vision we believe our mission is to encourage and:

  • Empower patients, practitioners, and industry partners by promoting engagement in an active community where all voices matter.
  • Support the co-creation, provision, and signposting of high-quality education and information services to enhance the delivery of care to people with neurological conditions.
  • Stimulate and develop inclusive and meaningful communication amongst all members of the neurology community.
  • Value the personal narratives of all people – both patients and practitioners – who live with suspected or confirmed neurological / psychiatric / neurodevelopmental conditions.
  • Support improved access to more community- and online-based neurology services.
  • Educate health professionals on the importance of their language during patient interactions, to enable patients to make fully informed decisions about their neurological treatment.
  • Promote a patient-practitioner partnership that enhances trust and allows patients to express their needs and expectations.
  • Give patients within the neurology community the ability to express themselves by sharing their experiences with society members.
  • Increase awareness of individual differences within neurological conditions, promoting the importance for practitioners to adapt treatments and meet the needs of the patient.

Together we believe this will enhance the delivery and quality of care to people with suspected and confirmed neurological conditions and optimise their quality of life.

In Partnership

Launched in April 2005 and now with nearly 1600 people (from across the UK and abroad) who are registered with the Society, the P-CNS is keen to collaborate to support the provision of education to healthcare professionals at the frontline of providing care to people living with neurological conditions. We wish to work in partnership with any organisation and company that recognises how learning through lived experiences needs greater recognition as a way to improve the provision of services for those living with neurological conditions and thereby optimise access to expert neurology services.

The Steering Committee

Jonny Acheson

Jonny has been an Emergency Medicine Consultant in Leicester since 2009. His Postgraduate Emergency Medicine education work from 2012-2015 was recognised nationally with an HSJ award in 2016 and he was appointed as an Honorary Associate Professor in Medical Education the same year. Having been the Clinical Lead for Assessment at the University of Leicester Medical School he is now working with the GMC implementing the CPSA and he sits on the Parkinson’s Excellence Network Education Steering Group. Diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2016 he strives to live as well as he can every day with a focus on exercise, diet and reducing stress. He took up art as a hobby again a few years ago and uses this to educate about Parkinson’s but also to draw people’s pets and children’s wall art using the letters that spell their name. To listen to Jonny’s short message, please click here.

Catherine Atkinson

Catherine Atkinson is an occupational therapist who has predominantly worked in community neurological rehabilitation over the last 20 years, providing clinical leadership to both community and inpatient services. She is currently the Consultant Allied Health Professional (AHP) in neurological rehabilitation at the Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Her special interest is integrated care for people with long term neurological conditions to maximise independence, quality of life and maintain life roles. She is on the programme board for the NIHR research Personalised Care for people with Parkinson’s – PD-Care project and was a member of the London Neurosciences Strategic Clinical Network.

Jane Bradshaw

Jane has been working in Neurology for over 25 years, with a specialist interest in MS, PD and MND. She has worked with NICE on the Quality Standards Committee, the MS Trust and MS Society on the expert committee.  Jane also lives with Fibromyalgia. 

Jakko Brouwers

Jakko Brouwers is the Honorary Chair of ACPIN (Association of Chartered Physiotherapists In Neurology), where he leads the Board activities and oversees the running of the 18 regional committees with each an educational programme for local therapists. Jakko completed physiotherapy training in Heerlen (the Netherlands) in 1995 and has worked in neuro rehabilitation settings in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, England and Wales. He has been therapy lead for neurosciences in Wales and clinical service manager at the national specialist rehabilitation centre in Wales. During this time, he completed his MSc in Neuro Science Physiotherapy at Cardiff University. He later became a senior manager for performance and improvement at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board. Currently, Jakko works as clinical director and expert neurophysiotherapist at the Morrello Clinic in Wales where he continues to specialise in Stroke, Parkinson’s and ABI rehabilitation.

Alistair Church

Alistair Church has two working roles, as a GP principal in a semi rural practice in Gwent, South Wales, and as an Associate Specialist in Neurology at the Royal Gwent Hospital. His special interest is movement disorder, particularly atypical Parkinsonism. He was a member of the guideline development group tasked with updating theNICE Parkinson’s guidelines published in 2017. He is principal investigator for a number of observational andInterventional trials for atypical parkinsonism.He is involved in the application of value based health care to the care of patients with Parkinson’s disease in Gwent.

Hedley Emsley

Hedley is a Consultant Neurologist, with special interest in Stroke Neurology, at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Professor of Clinical Neuroscience at Lancaster University. His research interests include cerebrovascular disease and neurovascular changes in other neurological disorders. He has a number of external clinical and academic roles. He is a chief investigator and a research supervisor, and is local principal investigator on a range of NIHR portfolio studies in stroke and neurological disorders, as well as being deputy clinical lead for the North West Coast Connected Health Cities programme.

Chris Freer

Chris, introduces himself here, is so excited about the possibilities that being involved in a person-centred approach to neurosciences, can offer.  Almost 20 years ago I received a diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis.  I have taken control of this neurological condition by adopting a lifestyle approach towards my health and hope that being involved in this new initiative will enable me to tell my story and encourage others to do the same.

Clare Lindley

Clare, who introduces herself here, works as a Parkinson’s nurse. It’s a condition she has first-hand experience of as she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s aged 30. I have continued working as a nurse – my job gives me a sense of purpose and focus. First and foremost, I’m a nurse with the professional requirements needed to do the job, but I also have the added empathy that comes with living with Parkinson’s. I can’t really put into words how proud I am to be working as a Parkinson’s nurse – I feel very, very privileged. 

Neil Bindemann
Executive Director

Neil trained in both Immunology (BSc) and Neurobiology – nerve injury (PhD). Through Innervate Ltd, which he set up in 2001 he lead a team of creative people to identify ways that encourages and facilitates collaborations between healthcare organisations, companies, professionals with the general public. This is in part, to support the provision of medical education & create practical solutions that encourage constructive dialogue between health professionals & patients. Neil has worked with many leading professionals and stimulated and lead the creation of various education initiatives including Primary care and Community Neurology Society and Community Therapists Network.  Then in 2015, after a period of disturbing neurological symptoms, Neil’s interest in neurology, mental health and healthcare communication took on a new perspective, when he was diagnosed with a very rare, non malignant brain tumour – pineocytoma. It has been that lived experience that fuels his passion for supporting patient-professional communication/relationships, and opened up his vision to recognise the importance of lived experiences to drive a more person-centred care approach to support the quality of life of people with neurological conditions. It also lead to the recent launch of the Lifestyle Health Foundation (www.lifestylehealth.org.uk), which is advocating the significant of learning through lived experiences to prevent and heal acquired mind injuries.

Gareth NoBle

Gareth is an Associate Professor in Biomedical Sciences at Swansea University and his interest in person centred approaches stems from his work as a Director of The Hive Alliance CIC, which is an organisation that supports and promotes the empowering aspects of being neurodiverse. Additionally, Dr Noble is Chair of The Play and Leisure Opportunity Library Charity, based in Swansea, that provides play opportunities to children, young people and adults with a disability. Across his academic and community work, Dr Noble’s lived experience, as a neurodiverse individual and as a parent to an autistic child, has emphasised the importance of seeing the individual first, and not their disability or condition, to ensure their experiences are valued and respected in a meaningful way that allows their needs to be meet within a collaboration of equals. Click here for his short message.

Nassif Mansour

Nassif has been a GP in Kingston Upton Thames, Surrey for over 20 years. He is GP with Special Interest (GPSI) in Neurology, Mobility Disorders & Falls as well as Community Adults Rehabilitation working across Primary and Secondary Cares. Nassif, who lives with migraine, is also member of and Medical Advisor to Kingston’s Community Neuro-Rehab & Intermediate/Reablement Teams; Member of London Neuroscience Strategic Clinical Network and Member of London Cancer Alliance Brain & CNS Pathway Group

Lee Morgan

Hello, I’m Lee and I was diagnosed with epilepsy when I was 16 years old (now 42). Having tried multiple medications without success and most resulting in unwanted side effects, such as memory and cognition problems, and mental health issues too. Most of these side effects also had an impact on my social and work life. So, I contacted my epileptologist to offer me a solution which would improve my quality of life. (I talk about this journey here.)

I was offered either VNS or the ketogenic diet. I opted for the diet first as it didn’t involve surgery. Since then, I haven’t had a tonic clonic seizure, my quality of life has improved, with improved cognition and memory, I have also reduced my medication by half. Improvements were seen very quickly, and I’ve now been on the diet for over 5 years. The diet has been so life changing, that I wanted to pursue a career in dietetics to help others as I was. I am now in my final year and am looking forward to my career ahead. 

Alan Palmer

Professor Alan M. Palmer has board level experience with several organisations. Currently, he is CEO and Director of Elixa MediScience Ltd, a non-executive director of One Nucleus Ltd (a membership organisation for companies working within the life science and healthcare industry) and the British Neuroscience Association. He is also a Trustee of The Brain Tumour Charity and one of the internationally recognised scientists serving on the Welsh Government’s Sêr Cymru II Evaluation Panel.

He was one of the Founders of the first UK neuroscience-based start-up company Cerebrus Ltd (now Vernalis PLC) and also co-founded Pharmidex Pharmaceutical Services Ltd, a successful contract research organisation working in the medicines research arena. In 2005, he was voted London Biotechnology Network Entrepreneur of the Year

He is a visiting Professor at the University of Reading, an Honorary member of the Society for Medicines Research and a Fellow of both the Royal Society of Biology and the Learned Society ofWales.

Alan has a BSc degree in Biochemistry from Warwick University and an MSc and a PhD from the University of London.

Alan lives with Multiple Sclerosis 

Anita Rose

Dr Anita Rose is a Consultant Neuropsychologist. She is Director of Clinical Development for Renovo and originally joined the business in 2013. She has a passionate interest in Neuropsychology and has gained extensive experience in this field since 1998.

Anita is well regarded in the field of Brain Injury and Chronic Neurological Conditions. As well as her involvement in research, she has been published widely in peer-reviewed journals and several books. She is also known as a Champion for Multiple Sclerosis and provides significant input into the field of multiple sclerosis via her clinical work, research, publications, booklets and consultancy worldwide.

Anita is a patron, trustee and clinical advisor to many organisations across the world and is passionately committed to the development of services of excellence for those affected by brain injury and other neurological conditions. This has led to her being a regular global speaker with her message being one of empowerment to both people who have neurological conditions and to health professionals who work in the field of neurology. You can meet Anita and listen to here lived experience from here

Linda Russell

Linda is a specialist neurological dietitian in Hertfordshire and is currently secretary for the neurosciences specialist group for the British Dietetic Association. Linda has a specialist interest in MND and holds a palliative care champion role within Hertfordshire NHS Community Trust.

Miguel Toribio-Mateas

Miguel Toribio-Mateas, who’s short video can be viewed here, is as he says a clinical neuroscientist with a longstanding professional background in making sense of the complex relationships between food and behaviour on the gut microbiota and the brain via the gut-brain axis.

Miguel’s trandisciplinary approach to research and its translation allows knowledge from his degrees in business, human nutrition, complexity science, and neuroscience to converge with his lived experience as a person with a neurological condition, ADHD which enables him to see things from a neurodivergent / neurodiverse perspective. 

In his recent doctorate on the gut microbiome and brain health, he proposed a system whereby correlating real-world data from microbiome analysis and patient-reported health-related quality of life outcomes could help highlight the all-important role of the individual in person-centred neuroscience and neurology care. Miguel is driven by research that brings about participation and collaboration amongst different stakeholder groups, creating a level-playing field where patients are seen as people with a story to tell that should inform their care. He is also an advocate for bridging the gap between academic research and industry applications, particularly in the development of products and services that enhance our physical and mental health. That is the focus of his work at the School of Applied Sciences, London South Bank University, where he is involved in a series of small-scale gut-brain axis clinical trials grounded in real-world settings. 

Julie Riley

The Walton Centre NHS Foundation Trust. Julie Riley is Divisional Director of Operations for Neurology, Rehabilitation; Long term Conditions, Neuroradiology and Neurophysiology.Prior to this she was Programme Director for the Neuro Network (Vanguard Programme). She is based at The Walton Centre in Liverpool.She has also undertaken the role of Acting Executive Director of Operations at the Trust. Julie is a Nurse and Midwife by background and has worked in a number of senior leadership and operational roles across Cheshire, Merseyside and North Wales. She has a Masters in Health Care Management and holds the NHS Leadership Academy Award in Executive Health leadership. Julie is also a trained coach and is passionate about patient and carer involvement in developing services along with developing future healthcare leaders.

We invite you to support our work

Join the P-CNS today

If you wish to be part of and support our Person-Centred Care approach to supporting education and the provision of neurology services are keen to help us achieve our aims and objectives please join us today. We don’t have annual fee, it is a one off payment of £45 which also provides access to all our resources. All health professionals who join get free access to e-brain, Europe’s most comprehensive online learning resource in neuroscience. There are many modules relevant to primary care. 

We are also working with our Secretariat, Innervated Ltd to create online modules that will be developed through lived experiences.

You can join by going to the registration page and completing the form. Payment can be made via our online payment system.

Register now

Corporate Partnership Programme

We offer a Corporate Partnership programme for charities and companies, who share our vision and mission. Further details of the benefits of partnering with the P-CNS are available by emailing info@p-cns.org.uk. Details of our current partners can be found at the bottom of the page.

Policy Statements

The P-CNS aims to be transparent in its operations. Please find below the Society’s policy statements. We will make additional statements available in due course.

P-CNS Secretariat

The Secretariat for the P-CNS is serviced by Innervate Ltd, a specialist healthcare communications, that has been supporting the work of healthcare professionals in neurology and the wider neuroscience since 2001.Our approach to advancing healthcare communication is centred on working in partnership with scientists, healthcare professionals and patients and acting as a catalyst to the development of independent networking and educational opportunities. Furthermore, we provide the necessary support to scientists and healthcare professionals through our unique secretariat services approach which offers them access to a combination of administration support, event and project management, professional relations, marketing communications and fundraising strategy and support.

Click here for more information

Register

If you are keen to help us achieve our aims and objectives, which includes covering the costs of running our website, please join us today. There is a one of joining fee (i.e. not annual fee) of £45 which allows you to access all our resources and gain free access to e-brain, Europe’s most comprehensive online learning resource in neuroscience. There are many modules relevant to primary care.

Once payment has been received we will activate your registration (which is a manual process and may take more than 24 hours if you register on a weekend) and you will then have access to the website.

Register Now