25 November 2019
Prader-Willi Syndrome Association of Ireland (PWSAI) will host the International PWS Conference in Limerick in 2022.
The successful bid was made by PWSAI at the recent Global IPWSO conference in Cuba, which was attended by over 450 delegates from 45 countries.
IPWSO’s international conference is held every three years, and each time in a different country.
PWSAI was one of four countries bidding to hold the 11th conference in 2022.
The Association received strong support from family members, clinicians, an Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar and Minister for Health, Simon Harris and was successful in winning the bid. The event will be hosted in the University of Limerick in 2022. “We have a strong community of people with PWS as well as their families and professionals,” explained PWSAI Development Officer and member of the bid team Gary Brennan. “The hosting of this conference will enable further shared expertise, knowledge and an increased awareness of PWS on a national and global level”.
About Prader-Willi Syndrome Association of Ireland (PWSAI)
PWSAI was started by parents in the late 1980s as a support group for people with Prader-Willi Syndrome and their families in Ireland. They are a resident member group with Carmichael.
Objectives of PWSAI are:
- To provide support for persons with PWS, their families, and their carers by providing a range of services such as: promoting awareness of the syndrome; providing information services including seminars and conferences; and by promoting best practice standards of care for persons with PWS;
- To facilitate the development of each person with PWS to the full extent of their abilities in an educational, social, work, and leisure context;
- To facilitate awareness and understanding of PWS among the general public, among health professionals, teachers, etc.;
- To facilitate earlier diagnosis of the syndrome;
- To encourage and support research into PWS.