THIS week is National Colitis and Chron?s week and to mark the occasion, the National Association for Colitis and Chron?s Disease is asking West Devon residents to support the call for the provision of more specialist nurses, to assist those suffering from this debilitating and potentially life threatening problem. One in four hundred people in the UK suffer from an inflammatory bowel disease, the symptoms of which include severe pain, fever, extreme fatigue and urgent diarrhoea with some patients needing to use the toilet up to thirty times a day. It is a problem which makes normal work, family life, travel and even hospital appointments virtually impossible but according to an NACCD survey, only 26% of sufferers have the support of a specialist nurse. These nurses, of which there are only 150 in the UK, play a major role in improving the lives of their patients. Nigel Westwood, an NACC trustee, Tavistock business owner and Colitus sufferer has experienced first hand the benefits a specialist nurse can bring and is urging people to take part in the campaign to increase their number. ?You can add your name to the petition by logging on to http://www.nacc.org.uk">www.nacc.org.uk or by phoning 0871 734 3000. You can also send a letter to your MP via the website.? To join the West Devon branch of NACCD, call 01822 610260.
