April is National Parkinson's Disease Aware...( Approximately 1.5 Million American...),Health

Approximately 1.5 Million Americans Have Parkinson's Disease, Roughly

90,000 in Texas

DENTON, Texas, April 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Accolade, a Texas-based home healthcare and hospice provider, observes April, National Parkinson's Awareness Month, in hopes of driving awareness of Parkinson's disease. Accolade's innovative short-term program enables people living with the disease to live life to the fullest while maintaining independence.

According to the National Parkinson Foundation, 1.5 million Americans currently have Parkinson's disease and another 60,000 new cases are diagnosed in the United States each year. Parkinson's disease, a neurodegenerative disease, affects the brain's 'control system,' making everyday activities and habitual movements difficult.

Accolade's short-term program for Parkinson's disease is designed to assist in the transitions of the disease process for newly diagnosed and patients already living with the disease. The program helps patients manage symptoms, function independently and make appropriate adjustments to live with a chronic illness. Since there is currently no known treatment to slow or stop the progression of the disease, Accolade focuses their care on maximizing the patient's quality of life, coping with the symptoms and establishing implementation of specialized treatment plans.

In addition to Accolade's specialized short-term program for Parkinson's disease, they offer physical therapy to aide in postural instability or impaired balance, occupational therapy to regain independence in activities of daily living and adjustment to tremors, speech therapy to assist in speech and swallowing difficulties as well as cognition problems for more progressive cases.

To get a real, raw look at what a day in the life of Parkinson's disease looks like, Accolade interviewed Mr. Oman Turner and his wife Doris, of Lubbock, Texas. Mr. Turner was diagnosed with Parkinson's dise
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