Abstract Details

Title Assessing Knowledge and Awareness of Parkinson’s Disease through a Community Farmer’s Market

Topic Movement Disorders

Presentation(s) P1 - Poster Session 1 (12:00 PM-1:00 PM)

Poster/Presentation
Number 3-012

Objective To evaluate the feasibility of using a community farmer’s market to engage community members on Parkinson’s disease (PD) in the ethnically diverse neighborhood of Washington Heights/Inwood (WH/IN) in New York City.

Background Ethnic minorities are disproportionately underrepresented in PD specialist clinics and clinical trials. A poor understanding and awareness of PD is a major barrier to seeking timely care, leading to increased morbidity and poorer quality of life.

Design/Methods Through a collaboration with GrowNYC Greenmarket and American Parkinson Disease Association, we established an informational table at the 175^th Street farmer’s market in the WH/IN neighborhood. Tabling occurred on a monthly basis for 2-3 hours in the summer of 2019 and was staffed by a Movement Disorders specialist and a social worker (Spanish-speaking). We engaged the market’s attendees, provided PD educational materials in English and Spanish, answered questions and collected a demographic survey.

Results Starting July 2019, we completed 4 tabling efforts. During each event, 20-40 individuals engaged with the staff; 74 surveys were collected. Participants were mostly women (79.7%), mainly identified as Hispanic/Latino (82.4%) or white (9.5%), and were mostly above the age of 60 (64.9%; range 21-81). 17.6% of participants had never heard of PD. Many recognized that “tremor” is one of the main symptoms. Some felt it was a part of aging or attributed its cause to stress. Many participants commented that efforts such as our PD table are necessary to improve knowledge about diseases in minority communities.

Conclusions A neighborhood farmer’s market is a feasible resource to measure and increase knowledge and awareness about PD in minority communities. It mirrors the older demographics of PD patients and creates a relaxed environment that allows for engagement of community members. Most importantly, it creates an ease of access to information about PD by placing movement disorders specialists in the community.

Authors/Disclosures
Lynda Nwabuobi, MD (The Neurology Center K Street) PRESENTER	Dr. Nwabuobi has received personal compensation in the range of $0-$499 for serving as a Consultant for KX Advisors. Dr. Nwabuobi has received personal compensation in the range of $0-$499 for serving on a Speakers Bureau for Healthgrades. Dr. Nwabuobi has received personal compensation in the range of $0-$499 for serving on a Speakers Bureau for Consultant 360.
Elizabeth Delaney, MD (Georgetown Univ Hospital)	No disclosure on file
Hiral Shah, MD (Columbia University)	Dr. Shah has nothing to disclose.