Cape Region residents suffering from Parkinson’s disease may soon escape long drives to Baltimore, Philadelphia or Washington, D.C., to receive expert care.
Johns Hopkins Movement Disorders Center Director Dr. Ray Dorsey is working to bring Parkinson’s treatment to Sussex County through telemedicine.
Using a webcam, telemedicine provides voice and visual communication online, giving doctors and patients an opportunity to interact over long distances. The software is similar to Skype, a popular application that allows long-distance phone calls over the internet for a small fee.
Before joining the team at Johns Hopkins in August, Dorsey worked with fellow neurologist Dr. Kevin Biglan at University of Rochester Medical Center in New York.
The doctors conducted a study in which they used telemedicine to communicate with Parkinson’s patients outside Rochester.
Their research showed patients experienced improved quality of life, higher satisfaction with care and improvement of motor functions as a result of telemedicine.
“It could get rid of geographical barriers to care,” said Alex Gangler, Dorsey’s research assistant.
Several hurdles still exist for Cape Region patients, Gangler said; cost of care is No. 1.
Medicare and most insurance companies do not cover the cost of telemedicine visits for in-home patients, she said. There could be ways around this. Medicare might cover telemedicine visits if they take place at a nursing home or medical center, like Beebe in Lewes.
“It’s something we should be able to work through,” Gangler said. “We could probably start seeing a patient or two before year’s end.”
Lewes resident Dennis Leebel’s wife Betty was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2002. The couple regularly drives to Baltimore so she can see an expert about her disease. Dennis said it’s a three-hour trip each way, an hour with the doctor and typically another hour for lunch while they are in the city.
“By the time we get back, the whole day’s gone,” Dennis Leebel said.
The Leebels started the Parkinson’s Education and Support Group shortly after moving to Lewes full time in 2008. Since its founding, group attendance has risen from 50 to 140 people. The group became an affiliate of the Delmarva Parkinson’s Alliance in January, and on Nov. 6, held the first Parkinson’s-related symposium in Sussex County.
At the symposium, Leebel asked representatives from University of Maryland, University of Pennsylvania and Johns Hopkins University if they would consider doing something to cater to Sussex County patients. Johns Hopkins jumped on the idea, he said.
Leebel has spoken with Dorsey a number of times since the symposium; he is impressed with how quickly Johns Hopkins has gotten the ball rolling. “The symposium closes chapter one,” he said. “Now we start chapter two.”
The Parkinson’s Education and Support Group of Sussex County meets the first Monday of each month at Beebe Medical Center in Lewes.
Kara Nuzback
Cape Gazette