908-575-7350

TSANJ ANNOUNCES SPECIAL GUEST SPEAKER FOR BERGEN & PASSAIC COUNTIESSUPPORT GROUP MEETING

SOMERVILLE, NJ –

Bergen/Passaic County Family Support Group
Valley Hospital, 223 North Van Dien Avenue, Ridgewood, NJ
Wednesday evening, February 8, 2006 from 7:00 P.M. to 9:00 P.M.

Rebecca Spar, Esq. “Educational Rights”
Rebecca K. Spar, Esq. is an attorney with the firm of Cole, Schotz, Meisel, Forman & Leonard of Hackensack, NJ. Ms. Spar concentrates her practice in education and disability rights law. She is former chair of the New Jersey State Bar Association (NJSBA) Children’s Rights Committee and is currently chair of the NJSBA School Law Committee. She is also a member of the Board of Tourette Syndrome Association of New Jersey.

The Tourette Syndrome Association of New Jersey (TSANJ) has announced the dates for the continuing series of 2005/2006 Support Group meetings for individuals, family, and friends of those impacted by Tourette Syndrome (TS). Run in conjunction with nine affiliated hospitals across the state, the facilitated Support Groups educate attendees on a variety of TS-related issues and provide an opportunity to exchange information and problem-solve.

Parents, teachers, and medical professionals are invited to attend. Call TSANJ at 908-575-7350 or visit the website at www.tsanj.org for details and directions. There is no charge to attend.

UPCOMING MEETINGS
April 12, 2006   Stephanie Glaser, Educational Advocate “Coping Skills”
June 14, 2006

Cancellation of support group meetings due to weather will be posted to the website at www.tsanj.org. Contact us at 908-575-7350 or www.njtsa.org for driving directions and calendar updates.

BACKGROUNDER:
Tourette Syndrome (TS) is an inherited neurological disorder that is manifested in involuntary physical and vocal tics. Symptoms generally appear before an individual is 18 years old. TS affects people of all ethnic groups with males affected 3 to 4 times more frequently than females. It is estimated that 200,000 Americans have full blown TS and that as many as 1 in 200 show a partial expression of the disorder. There is no cure for TS.

The mission of TSANJ is to support the needs of families with TS, to advocate for individuals with TS, and to educate the public and professionals about TS. TSANJ has a membership of 2,500 families and medical professionals. The organization relies completely on its membership, corporations, government, and foundations to fund its mission.

Currently TSANJ operates 9 support groups at regional medical centers across New Jersey; conducts awareness training for teachers, school nurses, students and community leaders; manages a TS help line for disseminating information about TS to parents, teachers, doctors, and others; and works with Rutgers University at the nation’s only student clinician TS clinic, developing support programs and treatments for families dealing with TS.

TSANJ is collaborating with UMDNJ Medical Schools and Rutgers University to create a New Jersey Center for Tourette Syndrome and Associated Disorders (NJCTS). The NJ Center will offer a much-needed diagnosis and treatment resource for the thousands of New Jersey families with TS. In addition to serving the medical and psychological needs of TS families, the Center will become a resource for TS patients and families willing to participate in controlled research studies into the causes and effective treatments of TS and associated disorders. PRESS