Patient Power

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On this episode of Patient Power, host Andrew Schorr is joined by Dr. Monique Giroux, the director of the Booth Gardner Parkinson’s Care Center at Evergreen Hospital Medical Center, to discuss the latest in available treatments and how it requires an amazing blend of art and science to help Parkinson’s patients maintain full and healthy lives.

Listen as Dr. Giroux explains what is occurring in the brain of a Parkinson’s patient and how doctors use this information to begin to treat the symptoms. Although there is no cure, Dr. Giroux offers tremendous hope that with the correct combination of medications, and perhaps surgical treatments like deep brain stimulation, Parkinson’s patients can lead very full lives. She emphasizes the importance of treating the entire person who has Parkinson’s, not just the disease. Given the progressive nature of the disease, it is essential that the doctors and patient work together to continually maintain their wellness. This sentiment is mirrored in the Center’s unique multidisciplinary approach, with a neurologist, neuropsychologist, physical, occupational and speech therapist, nutritionist, social workers and counselors all working together under one roof to create a program tailored to the unique needs of each patient.

Alice Cleeton, a 49-year-old, diagnosed with Parkinson’s on her 40th birthday also joins the program to share her journey from the onset of the disease, through its progression, including the various medications and techniques she employed to manage the disease before having deep-brain stimulation. Alice’s joyful spirit is unmistakable, and she serves as a prime example of the how the most recent research and developments in this area of brain science, and a multidisciplinary healthcare team, are directly benefiting patients.