Doctors Lack Suffiecient Knowledge of Parkinson's Disease
Apr 11, 2005 - 7:42:00 PM
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"The basic principle of the NSF is that each person should have an individual care plan tailored to their needs. This is dependent on the doctor being able to recognise that a patient has Parkinson's, acting as the gatekeeper to services and securing appropriate care and support. We are concerned that this will not be the case for the majority of people with Parkinson's until general training is improved and sufficient nurses are employed"
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By Parkinson's Disease Society, London,
[RxPG] The Parkinson's Disease Society is calling for better training for community-based doctors and nurses in diagnosing and treating the condition. 90% of active members* of the PDS felt strongly that their doctor did not have sufficient knowledge of Parkinson's Disease, often leading to slow diagnosis and lack of appropriate care.
Other key services were also not in place - one in five of those questioned did not even have a local Parkinson's disease consultant such as a neurologist in their area. 85% stated that they had either no local Parkinson's Disease nurse or insufficient nurse support for their needs.
"We want the standards laid out in the new National Service Framework (NSF), which covers those with Parkinson's Disease, to become a reality sooner rather than later", said Linda Kelly, Chief Executive of the Parkinson's Disease Society.
"The basic principle of the NSF is that each person should have an individual care plan tailored to their needs. This is dependent on the doctor being able to recognise that a patient has Parkinson's, acting as the gatekeeper to services and securing appropriate care and support. We are concerned that this will not be the case for the majority of people with Parkinson's until general training is improved and sufficient nurses are employed.
"We believe strongly in a holistic approach to long-term management of Parkinson's. Regular exercise has been shown to slow the worsening of the condition and increase mobility. However, the physiotherapy and occupational therapy which is essential for keeping people active was only available to half of those questioned."
In addition to raising the issues of specialist knowledge and care for people with Parkinson's, during Awareness Week the PDS is highlighting the services that it, as an organisation, offers to all people with the condition.
"We have produced five new posters to spread the word about the PDS featuring a DJ, a journalist, a painter, a scientist and a schoolgirl, showing how each of their lives have been affected by the condition. We want to let everyone know they can phone our Helpline or go to our website at anytime and get the information and support they need", Linda Kelly added.
"We are always working to improve our support for people with Parkinson's, their carers and families and we want to make sure that this happens across the board. The NHS needs to work faster to ensure that there are services for people when they need them, be it a specialist consultant or a therapist - whatever age they are, and whatever the stage of their Parkinson's."
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Additional information about the news article
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Jane Asher is today launching Parkinson's Awareness Week, which runs from 11 - 17 April.
*Results from a consultation exercise carried out at the PDS AGM 2004 with representatives of the 17,000 most active members in the Society.
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