Parkinson’s Disease Program Scranton and Wilkes-Barre

Specialized Rehab for Individuals with Parkinson’s Disease

At Allied Services Integrated Health System, our Parkinson’s Disease Rehab Program includes comprehensive outpatient rehabilitation services to improve strength, coordination, balance, endurance, and the ability to perform activities of daily living. Our rehab professionals are highly trained in advanced treatments to support your independence and slow the progression of Parkinson’s Disease symptoms.

We offer a full range of services including patient and family support groups, speech therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and exercise programs. The goal of treatment is to help you keep the highest possible function at each stage of the disease.

To learn more about how we can help with Parkinson’s Disease, give us a call at 570-348-1360 today.

Helping You Live a Full Life with Parkinson’s Disease

Parkinson’s disease is a progressive neurologic disorder. It affects motor planning and cognitive regions in the brain. Research shows that targeted exercise combined with medication slows the motor deterioration associated with Parkinson’s disease.

Our credentialed, experienced staff provides specialized physical, occupational, and speech therapies tailored to each individual’s needs and goals. Therapy should begin at time of diagnosis and occur in regular bouts throughout life to ensure patients experience optimal function and quality of life.

Our Parkinson’s Disease Rehab program offers specialized care with important focus in the following areas:

• Daily activities such as eating, dressing and bathing
• Addressing vision problems
• Avoiding falls at home
• Maintaining skills such as writing, using utensils
• Adaptive techniques to avoid falls or trouble with turning
• Strengthening and flexibility exercises
• Equipment to increase mobility and safety
• Speech, speech volume, communication
• Swallowing safety
• Memory, cognition, attention, and problem-solving

Common Treatment Methods for Parkinson’s Disease

LSVT BIG and LOUD

The LSVT BIG and LOUD® program teaches patients to move BIG and speak LOUD based on the principles of amplitude, sensory calibration, and self-awareness of motor patterns (movement) without cognitive overload. Success of the program translates into new motor plans that carry over into everyday activities, thus positively impacting quality of life.

LSVT® BIG is a four-time weekly, month long, intense protocol that targets the slow, small movements common in Parkinson’s disease. Our LSVT® BIG certified physical and occupational therapists guide participants through seated, standing, and walking activities using large amplitude (BIG) movements with a high effort, teaching them to recalibrate the size of their movements and carry them into successful performance of everyday activities.

LSVT® LOUD is a four-time weekly, month long, intense protocol that targets a reduced vocal loudness common in Parkinson’s disease. Our LSVT® LOUD certified speech-language pathologists guide participants through repetitive verbal exercises using increased vocal intensity (LOUD) teaching them to recalibrate the loudness of their voice and carryover into everyday conversational speech.

Parkinson Wellness Recovery (PWR!)

Parkinson's Wellness RecoveryPWR!^® is an individualized, functional skill retraining program that targets four motor control skills shown to deteriorate and adversely affect everyday movement for people with Parkinson’s.

These 4 skills called PWR!Moves® can be practiced in isolation in multiple positions or built into tasks designed to improve a participant’s particular deficits in walking, balance, agility, endurance, dexterity, posture, and everyday activities. Our PWR!Moves® certified physical and occupational therapists apply Parkinson-specific teaching strategies to target multiple motor and cognitive symptoms, adapting for disease severity.

SPEAK OUT!

SPEAK OUT!® is a an intensive, functional program that incorporates speech and cognitive activities targeting improved vocal loudness by speaking with intent along with promoting communicative effectiveness. Each participant will receive a workbook including 25 lessons in order to continue practice at home during and after completion of the SPEAK OUT® program.

Cognitive-Communication Therapy helps to improve difficulty with memory, thinking, or attention. One might find it more difficult to focus during a conversation or have increased difficulty multi-tasking. An individual might have difficulty remembering or report ‘slowness’ in their memory or thinking. A speech-language pathologist can help an individual through education and incorporation of memory strategies into daily life.

Dysphagia Therapy helps to improve difficulty swallowing including coughing or throat clearing while eating or drinking, pain when swallowing, difficulty swallowing food or drinks, complaints of food getting ‘stuck’, or weight loss. Treatment may include different strategies, positioning changes, exercises, diet modifications, or diet changes. Video swallow studies are available at our Wilkes-Barre and Scranton locations and assist in guiding dysphagia treatment.

How to Get Started with Parkinson’s Disease Rehab

Getting physical therapy at our Rehab Centers is hassle-free. With Direct Access, you can begin without needing a referral, which means you won't have to go through the expense and inconvenience of seeing another physician for a referral.

Parkinson's Support Group

Join our Parkinson’s Support Group for a positive, supportive, and informative experience designed to help individuals with Parkinson’s live well. Meetings are held on the 3rd Tuesday of each month at 4:00 p.m. and last for one hour. Please note that we do not meet in December. In the event of inclement weather, please call our Parkinson’s Program Hotline at (570) 830-8982 to confirm whether the meeting will be held as scheduled. For additional information or questions, please contact Kristina Dorkoski at kdorko@allied-services.org

To find a nearby Rehab Center, please refer to the Locations section or contact us at 570-348-1360.