What is the Alabama Parkinson’s Disease Resource Center?
The Parkinson Association of Alabama (PAA) has launched an online resource center that provides valuable content to help those living with Parkinson’s and their care partners navigate the diagnosis.
The information found on this site is never a replacement for the guidance and counsel received from medical, financial, or legal professionals. Our goal is simply to equip those living with Parkinson’s and their care partners with a streamlined, easy-to-navigate resource center to best understand Parkinson’s and the local resources available in Alabama. At PAA, we believe education is power – and we give you the best resources to advocate for your care and live your best life with Parkinson’s.
Go-To-Resource in Alabama
This resource center is vast and is never intended to be digested in one or two sittings, rather consulted as needed. We do the heavy lifting for you, consulting and citing medical journals, research, and education that is produced and validated by some of our nation’s best Parkinson’s affiliate organizations such as the Davis Phinney Foundation, the Michael J. Fox Foundation, and the Parkinson’s Foundation to name a few. We also provide local information you need relevant to Alabama.
What will you find in the Resource Center?
Newly Diagnosed For the newly diagnosed, you will find information for anyone who suspects they may have Parkinson’s and is seeking a potential diagnosis as well as resources for those newly diagnosed, including:
Early signs that indicate a potential Parkinson’s diagnosis.
How to find the right medical specialist to diagnose and treat Parkinson’s in Alabama.
What to do to prepare for your appointments with specialists to optimize your time.
PD 101: An overview of Parkinson’s disease, including contributing factors, common symptoms, treatment overviews, and potential clinical trials with tips on sharing the diagnosis with family and friends.
Guidance for building your care team.
Knowledge for how to connect with a PAA Care Navigator once you’ve been diagnosed for a great start.
Treatments and Therapies There are many ways to treat PD, and treatments vary greatly for each person based on the symptoms that need to be managed. This section provides information about:
Symptom management with lifestyle factors that have proven to help for a successful wellness journey.
The importance of movement and how to plug in with groups that specialize in Parkinson’s exercises.
An overview of medications that are available and used to treat Parkinson’s to discuss with your doctor – as well as what medications to avoid for potential adverse effects if hospitalized.
Surgery options to help you determine if you could be a good candidate to discuss with your doctor.
The importance and availability of Parkinson’s therapists in Alabama.
Topics and Tips We address a wide variety of topics and common questions related to Parkinson’s while providing solutions, tips, and resources to live well with PD on a variety of interests, including:
Hospital and home safety
Advanced and long-term care planning
Working/driving with PD
Nutrition and Wellness
Products, solutions and tips for making daily activities easier
Care Partners This section on the website is specifically written to the care partners and family members of those living with PD. We encourage care partners to educate themselves on the previous site sections, but we provide tips and education specifically for the care partner in this section. Staying organized, building care plans, and offering a Quick Tips section for helping care for your loved ones are all in this section. We also stress the importance of self-care, respite options, and coping strategies as you care for your loved one with PD.
Resources Last but certainly not least, we have worked hard to cultivate potential resources you will need throughout your journey living with or caring for someone with PD in Alabama. In this section, we provide directories that have either been self-cultivated, or link to the organization that provides the latest and greatest updates in Alabama. From listings of Neurologists and Movement Disorder Specialists, LSVT BIG Therapists, to support and movement groups, to government programs that offer financial assistance. We also share access to webinars, blogs, podcasts, and recommended publications for your own additional research.
Why Choose PAA as your Go To Resource? We invested to build in this site based on your feedback. There are so many abundant resources available about Parkinson’s. Sometimes it can be overwhelming.
We monitor the available options nationally for you, combine that with local opportunities, and plug you into the information you need and want to know.
Our only goal is to be able to give Alabama residents living with Parkinson’s and their Care Partners the information they need to live a quality life with Parkinson’s.
The site is updated nearly daily with new content. Educational blogs are posted weekly with new topics. The information is provided FREE to Parkinson’s patients in Alabama through generous donations from company sponsors and individual contributions. Keep the site going – DONATE TODAY: https://donorbox.org/parkinson-association-of-alabama-2
If you have any questions about the content on the site or were to come across anything that isn’t accurate, please email Director of Marketing and Programs, Brooklyn White at brooklyn@parkinsonalabama.org