Australia's nursing homes will be swamped by a tidal wave of Parkinson's sufferers unless governments act now, an expert warns. <\/p>\n
A Sydney-based Parkinson's disease expert says rates are expected to jump 80 per cent over the next 20 years because of Australia's aging population. <\/p>\n
Currently 64,000 people have the progressive brain disease that causes uncontrollable tremors, loss of movement and bowel and bladder problems. <\/p>\n
Associate Professor Simon Lewis from the University of Sydney is expected to present new research on the benefits of community-based Parkinson's nurses at a nursing conference on the Gold Coast on Friday. <\/p>\n
Professor Lewis says Australia must adopt the UK approach of employing the specialist nurses or pay the price in nursing home care costs. <\/p>\n
'You have to have a way of addressing this tidal wave of patients who are coming over the next 20 years,' he told AAP. <\/p>\n
His research indicates that access to specialist nurses in the community can stave off the need for nursing home accommodation. <\/p>\n
He compared the health of Parkinson's sufferers and their carers in Shoalhaven, NSW, before and six months after they were placed in the care of a specialist nurse. <\/p>\n
'Very clearly what we saw is that during the time they had been seeing the nurse the patient's health had improved,' he said. <\/p>\n
'More importantly, the carers themselves reported that their own health had improved.' <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Here is the original post: Australia's nursing homes will be swamped by a tidal wave of Parkinson's sufferers unless governments act now, an expert warns. A Sydney-based Parkinson's disease expert says rates are expected to jump 80 per cent over the next 20 years because of Australia's aging population Continue reading
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