Objective: To create a list of needs and priorities in the advancement of the Movement Disorders field in general and Parkinson’s disease care in specific for the countries of Middle East, North Africa and South Asia.

Background: Understanding regional needs and available healthcare resources to treat Parkinson’s disease (PD) is essential to appropriately plan future priorities. The International Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Society Task Force on the Middle East was established in an effort to raise awareness and education across the region on PD and other movement disorders. Broadly, the task force encompasses the countries of the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia (MENASA). The task force undertook a needs assessment for PD care in these regions.

Method: A staged process was conducted to generate the consensus statement. First, literature review on PD epidemiology, clinical characteristics and genetic considerations in the MENASA countries was conducted to identify gaps in knowledge that require further investigation. Second, a survey was administered to task force members as a pilot assessment of services available for PD care in these countries. Third, a needs assessment survey was conducted the among the task force members which incorporated a Strengths Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats (SWOT) analysis and further discussions to generate consensus about PD care priorities in these regions. This staged process with triangulating data from different sources was used to ensure the credibility of the process to generate the consensuses statement.

Results: Eight overarching principles were agreed upon as the basis for the consensus statement: the need for more movement disorders specialists, multidisciplinary care, accurate epidemiologic data, educational programs, availability of drugs, availability of more advanced therapy, health care resources and infrastructure, and level of awareness among general population and health care professionals.

Conclusion: This work sheds light on unmet needs for providing care to people with PD in the MENASA. These data offer directions on priorities to increase awareness of PD and provide educational opportunities within this field in these countries.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/parkinsons-disease-in-middle-east-north-africa-and-south-asia-consensus-from-the-mds-task-force-on-the-middle-east/