Pilot project aims to provide Parkinson’s patients in Romania with dance therapy

Dance therapy training workshops for professionals and Parkinson's patients will be organized in Bucharest and Azuga as part of the ParkinsOn Dance project, followed by an artistic performance for the general public, from April to June 2023.

Parkinson's disease is a degenerative brain condition that predominantly affects dopamine-producing neurons, and the prevalence of the disease increases with age, affecting 1% of the population over 60 years of age. Of all patients diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, approximately 10-20% are under 50 years of age, and almost half of them are diagnosed before the age of 40.

The condition is not curable, but there are many treatment options that treat symptoms and improve quality of life. Recent clinical studies have shown that one hour of dance twice a week significantly improves balance, posture, movement fluidity, and the ability to initiate and change directions. Not less importantly, it alleviates the non-motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease (depression, apathy, emotional flattening), contributing to the creation of a feeling of joy, community, well-being, and increasing quality of life, like no other form of physical exercise and like no other therapy in general.

There are different Dance for PD initiatives in the world, in Italy, the United States, and the UK, and this year, through the ParkinsOn Dance project, the art of dance is coming to the aid of Parkinson's patients in Romania. Accompanied by neurologist Dr. Bianca Nițu, choreographer Irina Marinescu, and dance therapist and experiential psychotherapist Loredana Larionescu, they will teach contemporary dance and Argentine tango workshops in Bucharest and Azuga this summer.

The initiative starts in early April with a two-day dance therapy techniques workshop for Parkinson's disease, taught by specialists Melanie Brierly and Sari Lievonien.

The National Dance Center in Bucharest is hosting this pilot project, where the first series of dance therapy workshops for people diagnosed with Parkinson's disease will take place from April to May. In June, the ParkinsOn Dance initiative continues at the Azuga Orthopedics and Traumatology Hospital, under the guidance of the team from Bucharest and the Rehabilitation Medicine doctor, Dr. Andreea Mitulescu, who will host a second series of workshops, culminating in an artistic presentation.

ParkinsOn Dance is the first project that supports patients diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in Romania, aiming to alleviate the physical and emotional symptoms of this condition and increase the quality of life of people with this diagnosis.

(Photo source: Asociatia Entuziart)