How to Help Latinos with Parkinson’s Disease

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An amazing program is reaching out to help Arizona Latinos who are diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, which affects Latinos at twice the rate as other minorities.

The program is part of the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center in Phoenix.

They center has Spanish-speaking promotores visit Parkinson’s patients in their homes to provide education and support across 13 visits. They also offer fitness classes, support and choir groups, painting workshops, and caregiver training classes, Cronkite News reports.

Why are these services so important?

Many Latinos lack proper access to health care and information about Parkinson’s disease—a neurological condition that affects movement or balance—and lack resources to begin treatment and improve living conditions, Claudia Martinez of the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center, told Cronkite News.

Most new Parkinson’s patients also experience depression, anxiety, and apathy.

“That’s why we believe that it’s very important not only to provide services for Latinos with Parkinson’s but also to educate the Hispanic community about this disease,” Martinez said.

Cronkite News explored how the outreach program has helped Corina Villalobos.

Villalobos, diagnosed with Parkinson’s 10 years ago, attends painting and sewing classes at the center and sings in its Spanish-language choir to benefit her family.

“The reason is my daughters, my family,” Villalobos told Cronkite News in Spanish. “They’re everything.”

Read more here.

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Healthcare Access

By The Numbers By The Numbers

25.1

percent

of Latinos remain without health insurance coverage

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