Challenges in conducting research to improve the health of people with Parkinson's disease and the well-being of their family carers.
Parkinson's disease (PD) is a degenerative neurological disorder growing at a rate of 1% per head of population. This disabling condition requires ongoing health support to maintain the person's function, well-being and social engagement, and to maintain the quality of life of the family carer. An outpatient rehabilitation program is being offered at the War Memorial Hospital, Sydney, Australia, to support these outcomes for individuals with PD and their family carers. Although achieving its aims, this multidisciplinary project has identified difficulties for the health team when conducting rehabilitation research with this particular group of people. The paper describes the PD program, outlines these difficulties and makes suggestions to help health staff when conducting research with vulnerable populations.
D017028:Caregivers; D006302:Health Services Research; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D009517:New South Wales; D010044:Outpatient Clinics, Hospital; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D010348:Patient Care Team; D012944:Social Support