2.13 Care planning

A person’s Parkinson’s symptoms and how these symptoms affect them can change (fluctuate) from day to day, and even from hour to hour. This can be caused by Parkinson’s or the medication used to treat it. Because of this, it’s hard to assess the needs of someone with the condition. Symptoms will get worse when someone’s Parkinson’s drugs are wearing off and improve again after Parkinson’s drugs are taken.

Actions to take

  • Speak to the person and their carer (if they have one) about their individual needs. They know best how the condition affects them.
  • When doing a care needs assessment, make sure you meet with the person on several occasions and at different times of the day. They should be reviewed regularly.
  • Use the non-motor symptoms questionnaire below to help you get a clear picture of how Parkinson’s is affecting the individual. Remember that everyone experiences the condition in a different way.

Non-motor symptoms questionnaire

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By looking through this questionnaire you’ll begin to get a sense of the non-motor symptoms that can affect people with Parkinson’s.

This questionnaire can be used by people with Parkinson’s to help them explain to a healthcare professional how their non-motor symptoms are affecting them. This can help healthcare professionals to treat the person with Parkinson’s appropriately.

Health or care workers can help people affected by Parkinson’s and their family to fill in the non-motor symptoms questionnaire [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] before they visit a doctor or Parkinson’s nurse.

Often people with Parkinson’s don’t realise these symptoms are part of their condition and they can go unreported.

There are many more non-motor symptoms experienced by people with Parkinson’s than we have time to explain in this course. Please study the non-motor symptom questionnaire to familiarise yourself with these.

You can download the non-motor symptoms questionnaire on the Parkinson’s UK website.

2.14 What is the impact of Parkinson’s on people’s daily life?