Parkinson’s Wellness Program at Hackensack Meridian JFK Johnson Rehabilitation Institute Focuses on Preserving and Regaining Function

Short-term inpatient experience for people living with Parkinson’s disease helps optimize independence

Hackensack Meridian JFK Johnson Rehabilitation Institute recently launched Parkinson’s Wellness Program, an innovative, two-week inpatient rehabilitation experience for people living with Parkinson’s disease, which can present differently across individuals. Once the diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease is established, medications, therapy and exercise are key to better control of the symptoms. This Parkinson’s Wellness program optimizes all of these aspects of treatments.

“The team of Rehabilitation Medicine physicians, neurologists and specialized therapists identified the need to help people diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease who are not acutely ill or severely disabled but who struggle greatly at home with the symptoms and lifestyle changes that Parkinson’s disease brings,” said Sara J. Cuccurullo, M.D., vice president and medical director, JFK Johnson Rehabilitation Institute. “In our new program, patients are admitted from their homes to participate in an individualized, multidisciplinary and targeted two-week inpatient rehabilitation program that helps them restore and maintain their function.”

Whether it be making medication adjustments, decreasing falls, improving voice quality or gaining more independence with activities of daily living, the JFK Johnson Rehabilitation Institute’s Parkinson’s Wellness Program customizes the treatment approach for each patient’s stay. The team focuses on safety and reducing hospital admissions.

Of the 23 patient graduates to date, positive outcomes include reduced fainting and falls due to better blood pressure management, reduction in number of at-home caregivers needed due to ability to rise from a chair, toilet or bed. A long-term therapy maintenance program supports success beyond the in-patient experience.

“These functional improvements have ripple effects,” JFK Johnson Rehabilitation Institute physiatrist Steven Markos, M.D., said. “The continuum of care provides not just a boost in function, but in quality of life.”

“Every individual who comes to the program is involved in developing their own treatment goals,” said Janice P. Dibling MS, CCC/SLP, manager of Acute and Inpatient Rehabilitation Speech Pathology, JFK Johnson. “We provide the encouragement, education and specialized care that help people to be their own best self.”

A patient’s initial assessment is completed by physical medicine and rehabilitation physicians at JFK Johnson Rehabilitation Institute and neurologists specializing in movement disorders at Hackensack Meridian Neuroscience Institute at JFK University Medical Center.

These doctors work with rehabilitation nurses, physical and occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists, social workers, rehabilitation psychologists, pharmacists, nutritionists and exercise physiologists to create a customized treatment plan based on the patient’s health and specific goals. Resources, education, and equipment recommendations are provided based on an individual’s needs. Families and caretakers are welcomed to participate in the program.

After the two-week inpatient stay, patients are transitioned to outpatient services, as appropriate, to enhance their continued approach to living well with Parkinson’s disease. These outpatient programs include physical, occupational and speech therapies, the “ParkinSINGS” (a choir for people with Parkinson’s), Rock Steady Boxing, Parkinson’s support groups as well as further referrals to encourage carryover of improved function.

Criteria for the program includes those who may be experiencing frequent falls at home, a "freezing" gait, the need for medication adjustment or worsening swallowing problems. Candidates need to be able to tolerate 3 or more hours of therapy in a day. 

Learn more about innovative rehabilitative care at JFK Johnson Rehabilitation Institute.