Rea Mattocks and Annie Folkard are two Birdshot patients who originally met in 2008 at an International Birdshot Symposium in Boston, USA. Because of their personal experiences, they decided that they would like to raise the profile of Birdshot Chorioretinopathy and support people with Birdshot in finding speedy and appropriate care and treatment. They developed this website in October 2009, formed links with specialist uveitis consultants throughout the UK and carried out a survey to establish the numbers of people with Birdshot.
Since that time, BUS has grown and developed, taking on four new Directors and establishing a core membership of nearly 300 (October 2011) including people with Birdshot, family and friends and professionals working in the field of Birdshot. BUS has strong links with sister Birdshot organisations in France and the US. BUS supports patients with Birdshot across the world, as well as in the UK.
Rea Mattocks (below)
Rea (pronounced Raya) was diagnosed in January 2006. She experienced difficulties in obtaining medication to control the disease, and was forced to leave work due to the side-effects of the original medication regime she was placed on.
Rea aims to improve services in the UK for people who have Birdshot, support patients through their experiences and provide appropriate information for patients and healthcare professionals.
Rea is a qualified social worker who worked in health and social care until she was diagnosed with Birdshot. Her most recent post was as Director of Adult Social Services for a large county council. This background has proved extremely useful in understanding the internal workings of the NHS and public sector in general, and has allowed her to ensure a high profile for Birdshot.
Annie Folkard (below)
Annie was diagnosed with Birdshot Chorioretinopathy in 2004. Unusually she was diagnosed on her first hospital appointment, but subsequently received no treatment for two years. During this time her eyesight slowly deteriorated and tests revealed that her rods and cones were slowly dying. Eventually she found a consultant who provided her with aggressive treatment. Tests have shown that one eye is improved whilst the other hasn’t deteriorated further. Because of her experience she is passionate that all sufferers should receive the appropriate treatment to deal with their different conditions. A correct early diagnosis can be vital to save sight. Annie lives in London with her family. Throughout all this she has retained her job, running a small business on her own. She trained in design, and has a long association with the charity WaterAid where she helped it grow from a 3 man organisation towards the sizeable organisation it is today.
