Help Parkinson’s patients

It’s astonishing to learn that while New Mexico has an estimated 9,000 people living with Parkinson’s disease, our state has just three specialists in movement disorders.

That shortage often means patients can wait nine months for an appointment — a serious problem given symptoms can change, worsen or multiply, and medications can have terrible side effects.

Several individuals suffering from Parkinson’s, their loved ones and others descended on the Roundhouse last Wednesday to advocate for a memorial calling for the creation of a Movement Disorders Center in the state. The memorial asks the University of New Mexico Board of Regents to develop a plan for such a center and to report back by Nov. 1.

They should. Because while the cost of such a center is unclear, given the need that exists here, our state has a moral obligation to explore whether we can make it happen.

Parkinson’s is a neurological disease that makes it difficult for people to control and coordinate their movements. Symptoms can include tremors and shaking, anxiety and depression, vision problems and slurred speech. There’s no cure, but symptoms can be managed with medications, even surgery.

Parkinson’s patient Yara Pitchford told lawmakers last week that “not being able to be seen by a physician as frequently as you’d like leaves one feeling quite helpless.”

UNM regents and the UNM Health Sciences Center should make this a priority and move quickly; people are suffering.