Objective: To develop and pilot a regional Clinical Trials Navigation Toolkit to improve community neurologist awareness of Parkinson’s disease (PD) clinical trials and support equitable referral of underrepresented patients in Southern California.

Background: Participation in PD clinical trials remains limited among patients receiving care outside academic movement disorders centers. Patients in community neurology practices, particularly those from historically underrepresented groups, may face barriers including limited trial awareness, unclear referral pathways, language barriers, and logistical constraints. Strengthening ties between academic centers and community clinicians may improve equitable access to research participation.

Method: We developed a pilot Clinical Trials Navigation Toolkit to facilitate referrals from community neurology practices to an academic movement disorders center. Components include: (1) a provider-facing summary of active PD trials with key eligibility criteria and referral information; and (2) bilingual (English/Spanish) patient-facing flyers with direct contact information for a clinical research coordinator. The toolkit will be piloted in community neurology clinics across Los Angeles and Ventura counties. Pre- and post-implementation provider surveys will assess trial awareness, referral confidence, referral practices, and perceived barriers. Referral metrics will be tracked, and patients responding to flyers may provide optional anonymous demographic data to assess reach across diverse populations. Future phases aim to expand to safety-net health systems.

Results: Baseline referral patterns show limited engagement between community clinics and PD clinical trial programs. Across clinics representing 19 neurology providers, six referrals for PD clinical trials were received over the prior year. Three were for interventional trials; none met eligibility criteria or proceeded to screening. Three were for observational or biobank studies, all resulting in completed participation.

Conclusion: This pilot study will evaluate the feasibility of a structured navigation toolkit to improve community physician awareness of PD clinical trials and facilitate referrals. If successful, this scalable regional model may expand equitable access to PD research participation and inform broader implementation across community and safety-net health systems.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/improving-community-access-to-parkinsons-disease-clinical-trials-protocol-for-a-regional-navigation-toolkit-in-southern-california/