Objective: To explore perspectives of health and social care professionals (HSCPs) in Ghana and Kenya on clinical mobility management for Parkinson’s disease (PD).

Background: Mobility impairments are a defining feature of PD. Although evidence-based multidisciplinary interventions support mobility management in high-income settings, this may not reflect the realities of care in Ghana and Kenya.

Method: 37 HSCPs took part in four workshops across four sites, representing urban and rural clinical settings in Ghana and Kenya. HSCPs represented diverse disciplines, e.g. neurologists, physiotherapists, nurses, psychologists, medical officers, dieticians, pharmacists, social care workers and support group leads. A semi-structured topic guide focused on clinical management of mobility symptoms and challenges in PD, using vignettes of patient experiences from Ghana to prompt discussion. Data were analysed using thematic analysis.

Results: Three preliminary themes were constructed through iterative coding and interpretation. Covering Over the Cracks describes how HSCPs navigate a fragmented and siloed health and social care system to deliver multidisciplinary care for PD, including mobility support. This theme highlights how HSCPs adapt or improvise clinical practice to work around systemic inequalities and meet patient needs, often with minimal formal training in mobility management. The Reality of Living with Parkinson’s captures barriers to mobility management where financial resources shape access to medication, physiotherapy, and clinical care. Cultural norms, unmet expectations about treatment, and stigma associated with mobility symptoms can further reduce engagement with medication and physiotherapy. Towards Brighter Futures captures HSCPs’ perspectives on overcoming barriers through education for people with PD, carers, and the public to improve understanding of PD symptoms and reduce stigma within resource-limited healthcare systems. Longer term, there is a need to upskill HSCPs on mobility and advocate for national policy change to prioritise PD within health insurance and support access to medication.

Conclusion: Low-resource educational materials may support awareness and management of mobility challenges in PD short-term. Longer-term improvements in mobility care will require sustained awareness, HSCP upskilling, and policy advocacy.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/most-of-us-are-improvising-with-the-work-we-are-doing-perspectives-of-health-and-social-care-professionals-in-ghana-and-kenya-on-mobility-management-for-parkinsons-disease/