Program gives patients support, knowledge to cope with Parkinson's disease

FRANCESCA DONLAN

news-press.com - Marian Lewis felt powerless when doctors diagnosed her with Parkinson's disease in October 2009.

 

"Doctors aren't always so nice when they tell you,"

 

said Lewis, 73. "They tell you there is no cure and then you have to go to physical therapy. Then they want to teach you how to use a walker."

The Fort Myers retiree had no plans to use a walker. Instead, she enrolled in the

 

Hope Parkinson's Program at Hope Hospice.

 

Now she feels empowered and supported by a community that understands her challenges.

Hope Hospice took over the Parkinson's Program from Lee Memorial Health System about two years ago, said Samira Beckwith, Hope Hospice president and CEO.

And the new program is bigger and better than it has ever been, she said.

The goal is to provide coordinated care, which includes:

  • life enrichment classes
  • educational workshops
  • exercise and movement classes
  • social programs throughout Lee County.

 

There's even a cruise for Parkinson's patients and their families in January.

"It's alarming how many people are impacted,"

 

Beckwith said. "The disease changes their entire social circle, and they all need support. It's good to have other people to talk to, so they don't feel isolated."

But sometimes it's difficult to encourage newly diagnosed people to come to the Parkinson's Program, when they hear, Hope Hospice, Lewis said.

"This is not the end of your life, it's the beginning. It's hope. It's a new challenge," she said. And it affects millions. In the United States, about 60,000 new cases of Parkinson's disease are diagnosed each year, adding to the four million people who suffer from the condition, according to the Parkinson's Disease Foundation.

It is a chronic neurological condition that is progressive and causes tremors, slowness.

 

There is no cure and no known cause for Parkinson's disease. Most people are diagnosed after the age of 50.

"The disease changes everything," said Bob Lewis, who cares for his wife. "Our lives have changed. We go to exercise class once a week together and attend some of the programs." But it hasn't changed his wife's outlook.

"Knowledge is power,"

 

 Marian Lewis said.

 

"We share tips with each other. I have gotten BETTER!"