Grant: Meetings, Planning and Dissemination Grant: Knowledge Translation

Parkinson Society Canada is currently seeking funding for a one day meeting of Parkinson Society Canada (PSC) and the Parkinson Research Alliance (PRA) to develop Canadian Clinical Guidelines on the Diagnosis and Treatment of Parkinson's disease. The meeting will be a one day meeting held between May 15-18 2010 in Ottawa. The Clinical Guidelines meeting will be held during the Canadian Neuroscience Society national conference. Most of the members of the Parkinson Research Alliance will be attending the national conference; therefore, holding the Clinical Guidelines meeting during this time will result in reduced costs. The goal of the meeting is to reach consensus on Canadian clinical guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of Parkinson's disease. Currently, there are no Canadian guidelines for clinicians to enhance the care for Canadians living with Parkinson's. Identification of Parkinson's disease is difficult and, because of this, frequently results in under-diagnosis or misdiagnosis. These guidelines will help doctors and neurologists correctly diagnose Parkinson disease earlier and more accurately. In addition, the guidelines will suggest treatments and lifestyle changes to better manage and treat the disease. In the current absence of Canadian guidelines, there is not consistency across Canada in the diagnosing and treatment of the disease. This demonstrates the need for guidelines, as well as the extensive impact guidelines will have. The consensus guidelines reached at this meeting will contribute to improved quality of healthcare based on best-practice standards received by Canadians living with Parkinson's, and improved service delivery by healthcare practitioners. Preliminary work on the Canadian consensus statement has already occurred. A formal review process for many topics was implemented. The PRA met in January 2009 to review the process. A further meeting is required in 2010 to build consensus and finalize the guidelines.