Rockville, MD, February 14, 2005 - The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) has become a financial supporter and Organizational Partner for the meeting of the World Parkinson Congress to be held February 22-26, 2006, in Washington, D.C.
The World Parkinson Congress, Inc. (WPC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing an international forum showcasing the best scientific discoveries, medical practices and caregiver initiatives related to Parkinson's disease. The meeting in February will convene physicians, scientists, other health professionals, care givers and people living with Parkinson's to learn more about the disease and to move forward in finding a cure.
"The work of WPC and the 2006 meeting are very important efforts in the search for a cure for Parkinson's," said ASHA President Dolores E. Battle, Ph.D., CCC-SLP. "We are pleased to support this international forum and to share evidence-based knowledge with experts from a broad range of disciplines."
Parkinson's disease is a chronic, degenerative nerve disease that primarily affects movement, balance and muscle control. The National Parkinson Foundation estimates nearly 1.5 million Americans live with Parkinson's. The disease usually develops after age 65, although 15 percent of Parkinson's patients are diagnosed before turning 50 years old. The WPC will work to bring the global Parkinson's disease community together to help build awareness about Parkinson's and to increase collaborative efforts to find a cure.
The Congress will present four days of an intense program that will look more closely at cutting edge science, public policy, best practices in care delivery and quality of life topics that all relate to Parkinson's disease. A call for abstracts will go out in early 2005 and exhibitor space will be made available to all companies and organizations that wish to reach the global Parkinson's community.
To encourage its members to submit evidence-based proposals for the conference, ASHA will award two free registrations to the conference to members whose proposals have been accepted by the WPC. The free registrations will be awarded through a random drawing. The Call for Papers will be available in March, on WPC's Web site at www.worldpdcongress.org. To participate in the drawing for the free registrations, ASHA members should submit their abstract to Sharon Moss at smoss@asha.org.
In addition to ASHA, present financial supporters for the Congress are the: Parkinson's Disease Foundation, The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, Northwest Parkinson's Foundation, Israeli Neurological Association, and the American Physical Therapy Association. A pledge to offer financial support has been made by the National Parkinson Foundation.
There are more than 30 Organizational Partners from eleven countries. The growing list of Organizational Partners includes nonprofit organizations and professional associations working directly or indirectly with Parkinson's disease. Other organizations that have agreed to partner with the Congress are the: American Parkinson's Disease Association, Inc.; European Parkinson's Disease Association; Family Caregiver Alliance/National Center on Caregiving; National Parkinson Foundation; Parkinson Society British Columbia; Parkinson Society Canada.
The Congress also has created partnerships with several well-respected professional associations in addition to ASHA, such as the: American Academy of Neurology; The Movement Disorder Society; National Institute of Neurological Disease and Stroke-NIH; American Occupational Therapy Association; and the American Physical Therapy Association.
"We are very excited to have developed these key partnerships with our friends and colleagues," said Dr. Stanley Fahn, Chairman of the Congress. "This is the first Congress of its type; it offers valuable information to everyone working or living with Parkinson's disease. The initial interest in the first World Parkinson Congress has been overwhelming and we anticipate that more than 3,000 people from around the world will attend. These strategic and Organizational Partnerships are important to the success of the Congress."
To learn more about the World Parkinson Congress or to see a full list of financial supporters and Organizational Partners, visit www.worldpdcongress.org.
ASHA is the national professional, scientific, and credentialing association for more than 115,000 audiologists, speech-language pathologists, and speech, language, and hearing scientists. Audiologists specialize in preventing and assessing hearing disorders as well as providing audiologic treatment including hearing aids. Speech-language pathologists identify, assess, and treat speech and language problems including swallowing disorders. For more information on ASHA, visit www.asha.org
