10 Bringing health care news to your home Improving the standard of care for patients with Parkinson’s disease See how our Movement Disorders Clinic helps There is no simple way to deal with the life-changing event of a Parkinson’s diagnosis. But with the proper resources and support team, a person who receives that diagnosis can improve their quality of life. Michell Ruskamp is a speechlanguage pathologist with Columbus Community Hospital’s Rehab Services at the Wellness Center. She works with people whose cognition, swallowing or speech have been affected by traumatic brain injury, stroke, cancer treatment or other neurological diseases, and she has a particular interest in Parkinson’s disease. A new approach While attending an education conference in 2018, Ruskamp learned about a new, multidisciplinary, team approach for evaluating and diagnosing people with movement disorders such as Parkinson’s disease. The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services reports nearly 700 Nebraskans are diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease each year. While the cause is largely unknown, research shows farming and rural communities have a higher rate of Parkinson’s disease because of pesticide exposure. Knowing this information, Ruskamp immediately saw the benefit of bringing this service to the Columbus community, and she worked with hospital leadership to make her idea a reality. After many years of hard work and coordination, Rehab Services hosted its first Movement Disorders Clinic in March 2023, with Ruskamp acting as the clinic’s coordinator. During the clinic, people with suspected Parkinson’s disease met with Dr. Erin Smith, a movement disorder specialist with Nebraska Medicine, for an initial evaluation. Then they received assessments from physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech pathologists and dietitians. If they received a Parkinson’s disease diagnosis, patients could enroll in the programs Rehab Services specifically offers for individuals with Parkinson’s disease. It’s rewarding to be able to offer a highly specialized service right here in Columbus.” — Michell Ruskamp Ready to get started? To learn more about the Columbus Movement Disorders Clinic, call Ruskamp at 402-562-4488. You can also learn more about services for Parkinson’s disease on our website at columbushosp.org. A booming success More than a year and several Movement Disorders Clinics later, Ruskamp said she’s proud of the clinic’s booming success. She noted that each time the clinic has been offered, all appointments are filled, with more individuals on a waitlist. “It’s rewarding to be able to offer a highly specialized service right here in Columbus,” she said. “We’re in a great location for providing gold-standard care to individuals of the surrounding rural communities and saving them the burden of traveling to Omaha.” As the clinic continues to grow, Ruskamp said she looks forward to serving as many people as possible. “Each of our clinic professionals has the same goal in mind,” she said. “As a comprehensive clinic, it’s our mission to evaluate multiple areas in one visit so our patients leave with a lot of answers.” Rehab Services offers the clinic quarterly. If you are interested, you will need a referral from your primary care provider or neurologist before scheduling an appointment with the clinic.
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