Support group creates awareness of Parkinson’s disease
An organisation which aims at creating awareness of Parkinson’s disease and also educating people suffering from the condition and their caregivers on the various aspects of the disease has been launched in Accra.
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Known as the Parkinson’s Disease Support Group Ghana, the organisation will also provide a platform for persons with Parkinson’s disease and their caregivers to share their experiences and also encourage and educate them on how to maintain healthy lifestyles.
Apart from people suffering from the disease and their caregivers, other members of the group include doctors, pharmacists, physiotherapists, speech therapists, nutritionists and other health professionals.
Parkinson’s disease is a chronic condition and progressive movement disorder which involves the malfunction of and death of vital nerve cells in the brain known as neurons. It develops gradually, sometimes starting with a barely noticeable tremor in just one hand that affects movement.
Signs of the disease include tremor of the hands, arms, legs, jaw and face or slowness of movement, rigidity in the limbs or impaired balance and coordination.
Challenges
At the launch last Saturday, the founder of the organisation, Mr Jervis Djokoto, said people suffering from Parkinson’s disease in the country were confronted with numerous challenges such as the high cost of medication.
“Under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), consultation is free, but medication which is very expensive is fully borne by the patients. There are some medications that cost as much as GH¢3 per tablet. So just imagine the amount a patient has to spend if he or she takes two tablets three times a day.”
“This situation is making life very difficult for the less-privileged people suffering from the condition,” he said.
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Mr Djokoto said many persons living with the condition lived in self-denial or found it difficult to seek help owing to its apparent stigma.
“This group is just trying to better the quality of our lives by coming together. It is also an advocacy group which will highlight the myriad of challenges facing us,” he explained.
Not well known
A pharmacist at the 37 Military Hospital, Mrs Esinam Neequaye, who also spoke at the event, said Parkinson’s disease was not well known in the country and, therefore, there was the need to educate the public on the disease.
“Most people who show symptoms of the disease do not visit medical facilities. In view of this, there is no specific data on the number of people who have Parkinson’s disease. There is also little knowledge about it,” she said.
She, therefore, advised people who experienced symptoms of the disease to seek early medical care in order to manage the condition.