A project that could revolutionise care for Parkinson’s patients and staff has been launched at a national event.
Entitled 'Developing Home-based Parkinson's Care', and led by the University of Plymouth and University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust (UHPNT), the project will focus on co-designing a new service to help Parkinson’s patients, carers and healthcare staff monitor a person’s condition remotely – ensuring care remains person-centred, while improving wellbeing of healthcare staff.
The launch took place on Tuesday 23 July at Future Inn in Plymouth, following the recent announcement of £75,000 funding from The Health Foundation and £15,500 from a Parkinson’s UK Excellence Network Service Improvement Grant.
Project partners include Cure Parkinson’s Trust, Flourish Workplace, Sheffield Hallam University, Global Kinetics Corporation, Parkinson’s UK, Fre-est, Radboud University, the South West Academic Health Science Network (SWAHSN) and UCB Pharma – along with people with Parkinson’s and their carers.
Why is the work necessary?
Current guidelines from the National Institute from Health and Care Excellence suggest that people with Parkinson’s should receive specialist review at least every six months, usually provided by a consultant and community Parkinson’s disease nurse specialist (PDNS). But a recent audit of patient experience, conducted by the project team, found that 46% have consultant appointments delayed by more than six months, and 60% have not seen the community nurse within the last year. Some regions of the UK don’t have the specialist service, and 50% of vacant PDNS posts are due to long-term sick leave or resignation.
