A Brief Introduction to IBD ja muut suolistosairaudet ry (IBD and Other Intestinal Diseases Association)

IBD ja muut suolistosairaudet ry [IBD and Other Intestinal Diseases Association] is a Finnish, nationwide association for people suffering from Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) and other intestinal diseases as well as their close ones. The association provides information, support and guardianship to its target group. The association aims to promote the well-being of people suffering from intestinal diseases and their close ones. The association’s operations include IBD (Inflammatory Bowel Disease), Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis, as well as Diverticulosis, IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome), Congenital Chloride Diarrhoea, Short Bowel Syndrome, Microscopic Colitis and Bile Acid Diarrhoea. The association’s key areas of operation include peer support, influencing and communications.

Membership for our association costs €27 (for 2024) and €17 for other family members in your household. As a member of the association, you will receive the membership magazine, issued four times per year, and it is available either electronically or in paper format. In addition, members are provided information guides, a membership card and a Toilet Card on the reverse side of the membership card. The Toilet Card can be presented to the staff of various facilities as a request to immediately have access to the nearest bathroom due to the illness. The Toilet Card is also available to IBD and Other Intestinal Diseases Association members as a mobile version, providing information about the card in English and Swedish.

Support and peer support

With the support of volunteers, the association organises various peer meetings in different localities. The main language of the events is Finnish, but occasional peer meetings are organised in Swedish or English according to requests. The association also has trained peer support workers who provide one-to-one peer support by phone, email or face-to-face. The peer support workers mainly speak Finnish; however, it is possible to talk to some in English. You can request the contact details of peer support workers by contacting the office at  info@ibd.fi, or you can find them in the association’s membership journal.

We organize versatile peer-to-peer activities in different parts of Finland, and occasionally also English-language meetings live or online. See events at www.ibd.fi/tapahtumat. Welcome to our Finnish-language activities as well!

There are several peer groups on Facebook which are targeted at people suffering from intestinal diseases. The main language of the groups is Finnish, but discussions in English and Swedish are also permitted. The groups can be found on the association’s Finnish website at www.ibd.fi/vertaistuki/vertaistukea-verkossa/facebook.

If you require more information or support concerning life in Finland with an intestinal disease, you can contact the association’s office, for example, by email at info@ibd.fi.

Kela, the Social Insurance Institution of Finland, has a responsibility to provide basic support in life’s ups and downs to everyone covered by the Finnish social security system. Kela publishes benefit and service guides also in english. You can find them at Kela’s website.

Crohn’s and Colitis UK Association’s website provides lots of additional information about intestinal diseases and living with them. www.crohnsandcolitis.org.uk/