malaysian parkinson's disease association (MPDA)

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since 12-09-2009

what is the malaysian parkinson's disease association (MPDA)?

MPDA is the first non-governmental and patient-based organization set up on 12th September 1994 as support group for people with Parkinson and their caregivers in the country. It is also the third of its kind in Asia after Japan and Hong Kong at the time of its incorporation.

The Association was initially registered as the Parkinson's Disease of Selangor and Federal Territory (PERSATUAN PARKINSON SELANGOR DAN WILAYAH PERSEKUTUAN) with the Registrar of Societies of Malaysia bearing the Registration No: 5642/94 Selangor. In 1996, the name of the association was changed to Malaysian Parkinson's Disease Association (PERSATUAN PARKINSON MALAYSIA) to be more representative of the Parkinson community in the country. It was officially launched on 6th April 1996 by the then Minister of Health of Malaysia, YB Dato' Chua Jui Meng. In October 2005, it received its tax-exempt status from the Inland Revenue Department of Malaysia.

In the early years of the association, the Secretariat was located at the homes of members due to its limited financial resources. Today, it is located at its rented premises, a single-storey corner lot terrace house located in Happy Gardens, Old Klang Road, Kuala Lumpur since October 2005. It is a place which we called our "Parkinson Center".

As at 31st October 2008, MPDA has a total registration of 637 members comprising 376 people with Parkinson, 134 caregivers and 127 supporters. In terms of gender, there are 293 males and 344 females.

The main objectives of MPDA are:

To provide educational and emotional support to people with Parkinson and their families;
To promote self-management of their Parkinson's condition by patients and their families, consistent with the best medical advice;
To facilitate the provision of suitable professional help and advice to people with Parkinson and their families;

Any person interested in furthering the objectives of the Association of at least 18 years of age, residing or working in Malaysia is eligible for ordinary membership on payment of an Annual Membership Fee. There are four different classes of membership:

(a) People with Parkinson;
(b) Caregiver;
(c) Supporter; and
(d) Corporate

how can the MPDA help you?

Consistent with its objectives, MPDA provides the following educational and support services

a) Health education for people with Parkinson and their caregivers

Generally, the Malaysian public knows very little about Parkinson's Disease . Thus, people with Parkinson are often anxious and scared when doctors tell them that they have Parkinson's Disease. Some of them think that they will get paralyzed very soon.

We educate people with Parkinson and their caregivers about Parkinson's Disease so that they can understand and cope with the various aspects of the illness. We also give up-to-date and reliable information on the various health services available in Malaysia for people with Parkinson /caregivers, some examples are: physiotherapy, home visits, medications, and brain surgery.

b) Moral support for people with Parkinson and their caregivers.

Parkinson Disease results in significant mental distress to both the patients and their caregivers. The MPDA is a place where people with Parkinson and caregivers share their experience and knowledge with each other. People with Parkinson help and give moral support to each other to cope with the illness. Most importantly, experienced patients/caregivers are the best councilors to newly diagnosed Parkinson's Disease patients and their caregivers. By becoming members of MPDA, people with Parkinson will know that they are not alone.

the activities of MPDA

The Association organizes the following activities:

Monthly Support Group Meetings which incorporate medical and healthcare talks/lectures at Pantai Medical Center, Jalan Pantai Baru, Kuala Lumpur. The speakers are neurologists , doctors and other health professionals. The Monthly Meetings are usually held on Saturdays between 3.00 p.m. and 5.00 p.m. Other activities include physical exercises such as Taiji Qigong, demonstration/practice in physiotherapy, occupational therapy, video sessions etc. This is also the time for patients/caregivers to interact with each other especially during tea time.

Newsletter (Berita Parkinson) is published once every three months. This newsletter is free and will be sent to all members by mail.

Other activities:

The Association's phone line is open during office hours to answer queries from members and non-members; senior members will give telephone counseling (in Bahasa Malaysia/English/Mandarin) when requested;
The Association's website www.mpda.org.my provides information about Parkinson's Disease and MPDA, and it has linkages to other Parkinson's Disease websites in the Internet;
The Association runs a small library at the Parkinson Center for members to borrow/return reference books/magazines/video cassette /VCD on various aspect of Parkinson's Disease - Reference materials in Chinese are also available;
The MPDA hosted the First International Symposium of the Asian and Pacific Parkinson's Disease Association (APPDA), in Kuala Lumpur on 4th - 5th March 1997 Ten countries participated at the inaugural meeting which included members from Australia, Bangladesh, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Singapore, South Korea, and Thailand. The event was a great success and attracted as many as 450 delegates from the Asia-Pacific regions.
Subsequent International Symposia of the APPDA were held in Tokyo (1999), Hong Kong (2001), Korea (2003), Australia (2005), and Singapore (2007). The primary objective is to foster international collaboration in the Asia-Pacific region to educate the public and the healthcare professionals about Parkinson's Disease and its management, promotion of public awareness and enhancement of community care of Parkinson's Disease.

our objectives

To provide educational and emotional support services to People with Parkinson and their caregivers and family members.
To promote self-management of Parkinson's conditions by People with Parkinson and their families consistent with the best medical advice.
To facilitate the provision of suitable professional help and advice to People with Parkinson and their families.
To promote awareness of Parkinson's Disease among professionals and the public at large.
To promote research into all aspects of Parkinson's Disease.
To support the establishment of centers for the treatment, both social and therapeutic, of People with Parkinson and their families.
To raise funds for use by the Association in pursuit of its objectives.