MS Forum® VIII: Advancing MS Care in the Pandemic Era

Series Overview

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, often disabling disease that attacks the central nervous system. The management of patients with MS is highly complex, and the development of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) has dramatically altered the treatment paradigm. The live, virtual “MS Forum® VIII: Advancing MS Care in the Pandemic Era” is a 3-part, multi-accredited webinar series that aims to provide health care professionals with guidance on the appropriate use of therapies and strategies for delivering individualized care to patients with MS. This session will incorporate didactic presentations and case presentations covering the effect of environmental factors and comorbidities in patients with MS, advances in progressive MS, as well as rapid-fire controversies in MS. This session will also feature the patient perspective, with video segments of a patient with MS addressing common concerns and the role of shared decision-making.

Target Audience

The intended audience for this activity is neurologists, neurology nurses, neurology advance practice providers (APP’s), and other health care professionals involved in the management of patients with MS.

Learning Objectives

Upon successful completion of this activity, participants should be better able to:

Physicians & APP’s

• Assess the most recent clinical and/or real-world evidence regarding the safety and efficacy of current and emerging disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) for the treatment of patients with MS.
• Evaluate the burden of comorbidities in patients with MS and their impact on quality of life.
• Identify clinical trends and controversies in MS that may have implications on clinical decision-making.
• Review data regarding the impact of DMTs on overall immune response to vaccines (including non-COVID-19 vaccines) into clinical decision-making.
• Utilize strategies for the early identification of patients with RRMS or progressive MS to facilitate timely intervention.
• Determine treatment for patients with RRMS or progressive MS based on evidence-based recommendations.
• Incorporate knowledge of the benefit/risk profiles of disease modifying therapies (DMTs), including COVID-19-related safety issues, when making decisions about early treatment for patients with MS.
• Examine the role of shared decision-making and strategies to improve patient-provider communication regarding the disease state and selection of optimal DMTs in alignment with patient preferences.

Nurses

• Assess the most recent clinical and/or real-world evidence regarding the safety and efficacy of current and emerging disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) for the treatment of patients with MS.
• Evaluate the burden of comorbidities in patients with MS and their impact on quality of life.
• Identify clinical trends and controversies in MS that may have implications on clinical decision-making.
• Review data regarding the impact of DMTs on overall immune response to vaccines (including non-COVID-19 vaccines) into clinical decision-making.
• Examine the role of shared decision-making and strategies to improve patient-provider communication regarding the disease state and selection of optimal DMTs in alignment with patient preferences.