Jan 1, 2019
Medical research is a long and complicated process. Discovering the underlying causes of Parkinson’s Disease (PD), finding new treatments, or searching for a cure involves laboratory work, animal testing, and clinical trials with control subjects and then people with Parkinson’s. One important way to facilitate that research is to involve people affected by PD. The Parkinson’s Advocates in Research program (PAIR) at the Parkinson’s Foundation trains people with PD and caregivers to become involved in the research process, advising researchers on the important topics and helping design successful clinical trials without being overly burdensome to people participating in the trials. In this podcast, Karlin Schroeder, Director of Community Engagement at the Parkinson’s Foundation, and Kevin Kwok, a Research Advocate in the PAIR program, describe the program, its aims, and how to get involved for anyone wishing to become an advocate.