AVRUPA POLIO BİRLİĞİ'NİN MESAJI

I have just learnt from Prof. Arzu On that after many years of hard work and pressure polio Survivors in Turkey have succeeded in forming the country’s first support group for themselves, their families, carers and supporters. This is a huge achievement and everyone concerned deserves congratulations on a job well done. But and its a big BUT- this is just the beginning of a very long journey to gain full recognition and funding so that all polio Survivors in Turkey have access to whatever is needed so you you can live life to the full with quality and independence.

The European Polio Union currently represents 23 polio Survivor support organisations in 15 different countries, with 3 other countries wanting to join. Turkey's application makes that 4. The EPU is the largest polio representative group in the world. The countries it covers contain more than 800,000 polio Survivors, with the your membership and the other three that will grow to over 1.2 million Survivors. Each member organisation and country are entirely free to follow their own agenda; EPU acts as a co-ordinating body that can bring people together, whether that be Survivors themselves, medical professionals and governments. By the way we network we make things happen, for example with our active participation we helped to ensure the World Health Organisation classified Post-polio Myellitic Syndrome (PPS), so making it impossible for medical authorities in Europe, and indeed world-wide, to deny its existence.

The EPU has organised ground breaking conferences in Copenhagen (2011) and Amsterdam (2014) where polio Survivors and the medical professionals were brought together to learn and discuss PPS. A leading Dutch consultant was heard to remark "we can't teach them about PPS but they can teach us so much more about how we can treat and help them". The EPU also helped to organise and promote the first PPS conference in Sydney in 2016 and is planning the first world Polio & PPS Symposium in Stockholm in June 2018.

I am due to retire as President of the EPU in June this year and I am so glad having worked with Prof. On over a number of years that I can welcome you, your organisation and all Turkish polio Survivors into the European polio family. We all all here to help one another so draw on the experience of others and perhaps one day I will get the chance to meet with you all in person.

With every best wish and regards for the future

John R. McFarlane, president
European Polio Union
9/3/2017