To explore the current landscape of interdisciplinary care across U.S. Centers in the Parkinson’s Foundation Global Care Network (PF-GCN).

The PF-GCN comprises 64 medical centers (50 in the U.S.) meeting strict criteria for excellence in caring for patients with Parkinson’s disease. Many centers feature an interdisciplinary clinic (IDC) model to provide holistic, streamlined care for patients across specialties. This is the first comparative study of U.S. IDCs across the PF-GCN.

We surveyed 50 U.S. PF-GCN designated Centers in August 2024 regarding details of their IDC practices.

Responses were received from 48/50 Centers. Of these, 31 offer an IDC. Most IDC teams included movement disorders neurologists and fellows, physical and occupational therapists, speech pathologists, and social workers, with 21 other specialties represented. Teams ranged from 3-18 providers (median = 8) and the most common time spent per provider was 30 minutes (60% of IDCs, range = 15-90 minutes). Twelve of the 31 IDCs met monthly (range = daily to once every two months) and the median length of an IDC visit was 3 hours (range = 45 minutes to 11 hours). A median of 4 patients (range = 2-39) were seen per IDC day. 

The most common reasons for IDC referral were complexity of care (93% of respondents),  new/increased falls (80%), decreased quality of life (73%), and care partner distress (63%). Most clinics (79.3%) reported a referral timeframe of 3 months or less. Most clinics reported insurance billing as a source of funding (55.2%), followed by philanthropy (20.7%) and PF grants (13.8%).

The majority of U.S. Centers in the PF-GCN offer an IDC, however heterogeneity exists with respect to the specialties represented, funding sources, and various clinic metrics. Clinics reported positive patient and provider experiences and increased efficiency as benefits. Future directions include exploring how different models correlate with patient outcomes.