Study Rationale: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is little known in most parts of Africa and its symptoms are often ascribed to normal aging or to an unknown disorder. Most health care facilities lack the capacity to detect and manage PD, leading to poor outcomes. This study aims to identify the tools needed to support the timely detection of PD at the primary point of care, the services available to manage PD and the challenges people face in obtaining proper care. The study findings will inform actions that governments can take to improve the care of people with PD.
Hypothesis: Identifying the tools needed to support early detection and the barriers that delay diagnosis and treatment both within the population and at the level of the health care system will improve the lives of people with PD.
Study Design: This study has four broad aims. First, we will validate screening tools for PD and use the validated tools to estimate the population-level occurrence of PD in Kenya and Senegal. We will assess the existing health services and the implementation of support for managing PD in Kenya. We will also estimate the PD caseloads in neurology clinics in Kenya and identify the factors that facilitate or hinder diagnosis and referral of PD. Finally, we will engage with policymakers, community and patient representatives to stimulate a dialogue on key health care gaps in both Kenya and Senegal.
Impact on Diagnosis/Treatment of Parkinson’s disease: This study will prioritize areas for improving multidisciplinary care and target the development of approaches for educating the public and health-care professionals on intervention, tools for early detection and guidelines for the appropriate referral of persons with PD. The findings will stimulate discussion on PD in Kenya and Senegal.
Next Steps for Development: We envisage leveraging the current study to strengthen diagnosis and care-management guidelines for PD and related neurodegenerative diseases. In the future, we expect to expand the scope of our work to include molecular and radiological epidemiology and the effective delivery of services for the care of neurodegenerative disorders