Table 1

Commissioning data for setting up a rapid-access MS service*

Population characteristics
Prevalence of MS	(per 100 000 population)
MS (all disease courses)	165.0
Relapsing–remitting	66.0
Secondary progressive	71.0
Primary progressive	16.5
Sex ratio (female: male)	2.45:1
Relapse rate	0.37 per patient per annum
Estimated clinical activity per 100 000 population/annum
Number of new consultations seen in rapid-access clinic	32
‘Did not attend’ rate	1
Relapses confirmed in rapid-access clinic	18
Patients treated with corticosteroids via rapid-access clinic	17
Referrals to allied therapy from rapid-access clinic	8
Inpatient admissions from rapid-access clinic	0.5

	Facilities required
	Essential	Desirable
Facilities	▸ 1 outpatient consulting space	▸ Access to day-case/inpatient beds ▸ Space to perform extended walking assessment ▸ Access to electronic records including clinical imaging ▸ On-site pharmacy dispensing
Personnel	▸ 1 administrator to triage referrals ▸ 1 experienced clinician	Rapid-access to therapies allied to neurology (eg, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, continence advisor)