Walking Cane Support to 100 Parkinson Patients

1. Project Summary

During this reporting period, Parkinson patients support organization Ethiopia has been conducting various care and support activities. And for about 30 PD patients were directly benefited as per this specific project activity and experienced more PD friendly support. Especially, as the disease progress, disability increases, and quality of life deteriorates. So that, when it reaches an advanced stage, they can’t able to move from place to place; even they demand someone to be there to eat, to go to the toilet and bathroom, to get access to treatment care and support services provided by PPSO-E as it is still the only organization working as a center of excellence in Addis Ababa and the country Ethiopia as a whole. Otherwise, if they don’t get access to have human support, various assistive materials like a walking cane become essential. Similarly, as they are almost new for the PD management skill, like enable to walk and how to use the canes they get a short orientation and exercises by professional physiotherapists and instructors who are assigned to take care of handling their body and using the tools just to prevent patients from fall.

2. Who is benefiting?

Those PD patients whose stage of the disease is being advanced and needs clock assistance and support from either human caregivers or demand to have supportive kits/ tools like assistive supplies like walking canes are the direct beneficiaries during this reporting period.

3. Achievement overview;

• 15 Walking cane necessary was bought and distributed as per the patient need assessment made all the time by the organization, just to update their preference from time to time.

• 15 PD patients acquired the necessary skill and knowledge about how to use the canes and maintain their body balance together with physiotherapy treatment as a comprehensive package.

• Transportation cost facilitation was provided for 15 PD patients who have come over to the PPSO-E center for physiotherapy and training.

4. Challenges

• The demand for PD patients is somehow increasing as its progressive nature requires additional demands and the newly registered onset and PD cases are increasing.

• Physiotherapy and speech therapy are requested highly and the number of PD patients' medical support coverage is still needed due to attention.

• Besides walking cane and stick demand, a significant number of PD patients are already laid on the bed/ becoming bedridden that means, provision of wheelchair becoming critical for at least 10 patients will the coming reporting period as per the resource allowed