World Parkinson’s Day occurs every year on 11 April to raise awareness of Parkinson’s disease. As a nurse whose father had Parkinson’s, I have a strong personal interest in this condition.
What is Parkinson’s?
It is a progressive, neurological condition that affects the brain and gets worse over time. It is estimated that 145,000 people live with Parkinson’s in the UK.
Symptoms include tremors, stiffness and slow movement.
Currently, Parkinson’s disease is the fastest-growing neurological condition in the world, and researchers are still uncertain why people develop this condition.
Is there a cure for Parkinson’s?
There is no cure for Parkinson’s disease, but treatments are available to help ease the symptoms. These include medication and supportive treatments like physiotherapy.
How can social care staff get involved on World Parkinson’s Day?
Encourage your staff to read up on Parkinson’s disease using the resources available from Parkinson’s UK. They offer resources for professionals including social care staff.
Booklet for care home staff: Caring for your resident with Parkinson’s booklet | Parkinson’s UK (parkinsons.org.uk)
Booklet for homecare workers: Parkinson’s: A guide for home care workers | Parkinson’s UK (parkinsons.org.uk)
Medication management
Medication management is essential for service users with Parkinson’s disease. Getting medication on time is crucial to managing the symptoms. The charity, Parkinson’s UK, provides practical resources to help service users and staff ensure medication is administered on time, such as time-critical medication and the ‘Get It On Time’ campaign. https://www.parkinsons.org.uk/professionals/resources/time-critical-medication-and-get-it-time-campaign-resources
Please join QCS and me in raising awareness on this very important day.
How can QCS help you?
Customers have access to a suite of medication policies and procedures.
Further resources
You can also get a Parkinson’s Day campaign toolkit from Parkinson’s Europe at parkinson-s-europe-world-parkinson-s-day-campaign-toolkit.pdf (parkinsonseurope.org)
