People can meet with the Parkinson’s UK team at a special session of the Borders Parkinson’s Support Group on Monday, January 27 from 2pm to 4pm in the chaplaincy at Borders General Hospital.
The meeting is open to people with Parkinson’s and their partners, family members, friends or unpaid carers.
The charity is aware of a recent reduction in working hours for the sole Parkinson’s Nurse working in NHS Borders. Nearly 400 local people have Parkinson’s. The charity wants to understand the impact of changes to the service offered by NHS Borders, and what people with Parkinson’s and their partners and families think about Parkinson’s care more broadly.
MSP Christine Grahame will also be at the meeting to hear first-hand from people living with Parkinson’s.
“I’ve been working with Parkinson's UK over many years and we’re concerned about recent changes to staffing in the Parkinson's service in NHS Borders,” said Ms Grahame.
“I’m looking forward to this meeting so that we can hear directly from people with Parkinson's about the care and support they need to manage their condition. Where people have challenges, we can push the board to improve care.”
Parkinson’s UK works to influence policy on behalf of people with Parkinson’s and advocates for improvement in statutory services.
Mary Ellmers, Service Improvement Manager for the charity, commented: “We work closely with health and social care professionals to help them understand the complexities of Parkinson’s in order to deliver better care for people living with the condition.
“Hearing about the experiences of people with Parkinson’s is fundamental to our work.
“In particular. where health and care services make it harder for people to manage their Parkinson’s, it's extremely helpful for us to hear directly about people’s experiences. We can then make the strongest possible case to make things better. We hope that as many people as possible can make it along to tell us what's working well - and what isn’t - in NHS Borders.”
Parkinson’s Local Adviser for the area, Natalie Blair will also be at the session, to answer questions about the adviser service and support available for people with Parkinson’s.
Parkinson’s UK helps to deliver a range of services across the country, including support groups, physical activity opportunities and an ongoing programme of talks and information sessions.
For more information on the upcoming session at Borders General Hospital, contact Mary Ellmers on [email protected] or call 07900 135 395.