We look forward to this symposium to educate our Parkinson’s community about the latest developments, and how incredibly valuable to our research their participation in studies can be.
Melanie L. Del Frari, MSN, APRNApril marks Parkinson’s Disease Awareness Month, and April 11 is World Parkinson’s Day. Both are opportunities to spread awareness for a neurological condition that impacts more than half a million Americans and their families. Parkinson’s disease affects nerve cells in the brain and impacts the way a person moves, causing tremors, slow movement, stiffness, and problems with balance and gradually getting worse over time. While numerous treatments are effective at slowing and decreasing the symptoms of Parkinson’s, there is no known cure.
As one of just 47 Centers of Excellence nationwide designated by the Parkinson’s Foundation, and the only one in northern New England, Dartmouth Health’s Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) is a leader in the treatment of Parkinson’s and provides extensive resources to Parkinson’s patients and their families in New Hampshire and beyond. As part of our commitment to this patient population, DHMC will mark Parkinson’s Awareness Month with a patient-centered symposium on April 28. “Frontiers in Parkinson’s Disease Research: What’s New for You” will address the latest research on Parkinson’s, current studies on the disease, and how patients can be part of finding a cure.
Panelists for this symposium will include:
- Mary S. Feldman, DO, co-director for the Parkinson’s and Movement Disorders Program at DHMC and director for the residency program for Neurology at DHMC
- Stephen L. Lee, MD, PhD, co-founder and co-director of the Parkinson’s and Movement Disorders Center and a movement disorders specialist in the department of neurology at DHMC
- Matthew C. Havrda, PhD, associate professor of molecular and systems biology at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
- Karl Biggs, BS, a PhD candidate focusing on neurodegeneration, cell biology and proteomics at Dartmouth’s Guarini School of Graduate and Advanced Studies
“While there’s still a lot of work to be done to end Parkinson’s once and for all, research into this disease has brought us closer than we’ve ever been before to a cure,” said Melanie L. Del Frari, MSN, APRN, clinical coordinator for the Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Program. “Our patients who live with this disease know better than anyone how devastating it can be—and many of them are eager to play a role in ensuring more families won’t be dealt this diagnosis. We look forward to this symposium to educate our Parkinson’s community about the latest developments, and how incredibly valuable to our research their participation in studies can be.”
“Frontiers in Parkinson’s Research” will be held at the Hilton Garden Inn at 35 N. Labombard Road in Lebanon from 12-5 pm. Registration is free but limited. To register, click here.
About Dartmouth Health
Dartmouth Health, New Hampshire's only academic health system and the state's largest private employer, serves patients across northern New England. Dartmouth Health provides access to more than 2,000 providers in almost every area of medicine, delivering care at its flagship hospital, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in Lebanon, NH, as well as across its wide network of hospitals, clinics and care facilities. DHMC is consistently named the #1 hospital in New Hampshire by U.S. News & World Report, and recognized for high performance in numerous clinical specialties and procedures. Dartmouth Health includes Dartmouth Cancer Center, one of only 56 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the nation, and the only such center in northern New England; Dartmouth Health Children’s, which includes Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, the state’s only children’s hospital, and multiple clinic locations around the region; member hospitals in Lebanon, Keene and New London, NH, and Bennington and Windsor, VT; Visiting Nurse and Hospice for Vermont and New Hampshire; and more than 24 clinics that provide ambulatory services across New Hampshire and Vermont. Through its historical partnership with Dartmouth and the Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth Health trains nearly 400 medical residents and fellows annually, and performs cutting-edge research and clinical trials recognized across the globe with Geisel and the White River Junction VA Medical Center in White River Junction, VT. Dartmouth Health and its more than 13,000 employees are deeply committed to serving the healthcare needs of everyone in our communities, and to providing each of our patients with exceptional, personal care.