Call for Parkinson’s nurse specialists

A petition signed by 11,000 people calling for a nationwide network of nurse specialists for people with Parkinson’s disease has been presented to the Minister for Older People, Helen McEntee, following a protest at Leinster House.

Tony Wilkinson, who was among the Parkinson’s sufferers to travel to Dublin for the protest, said having community-based nurse specialists made sense economically and would greatly benefit patients.

“They have community-based nurse specialists in Germany, France and the UK, where I come from. I was diagnosed three-and-a-half years ago in the UK and, within two weeks, a nurse called to my home to meet myself and my wife.