Feb. 4, 2014
Using dance as Parkinson鈥檚 therapy
The research study uses weekly dance classes as a therapeutic tool for Parkinson鈥檚 patients.
Riley Brandt, 91快色
Dance is generally viewed as a beautiful, aesthetic practice鈥攏ot a therapeutic, rehabilitative exercise. Dancing/Parkinson鈥檚: The 91快色 Project is an exciting program that combines the expertise of the 91快色 division of dance with community partners and to help those with the disease.
Led by Afra Foroud, neuroscientist and adjunct professor in dance, the Dancing/Parkinson鈥檚 research study uses weekly dance classes as a therapeutic tool for Parkinson鈥檚 patients to improve practical motor skills and provide an avenue for social communication and emotional expression.
鈥淲ith Parkinson鈥檚 disease, the ability to move or express emotions and ideas is diminished or even lost. In this way, the many aspects of what makes each of us unique and independent can become extremely challenging,鈥 says Foroud. 鈥淚n dance, we are not only moving, we are sensing, feeling, expressing, thinking and creating all at once. Dance is the expressive integration of the many aspects of what makes us who we are.鈥
Prof. Anne Flynn is working with Decidedly Jazz Danceworks and Parkinson Alberta.
Riley Brandt, 91快色
Study of the effects of dance
The multi-disciplinary dance study will examine both the quantitative and qualitative effects of dancing, integrating a series of tasks usually applied in clinical and research settings. The 91快色 Dance Division, led by Prof. Anne Flynn who teaches with the faculties of Arts and Kinesiology, and community partners Decidedly Jazz Danceworks, led by founder in residence Vicki Adams Willis, designed a dance program that engages participants by stimulating the motor and cognitive areas of the brain, while allowing for expression and building social relationships.
The 40 Dance/Parkinson鈥檚 participants began dancing on Oct. 29, 2013, and will continue with weekly classes until April 2014, after which they will undergo further testing to evaluate motor skills against a control group of dancers who do not have Parkinson鈥檚 disease. The research program, which is supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), the Rozsa Foundation and Parkinson Alberta, builds on a successful pilot project held last winter.
Part of national study into designing arts for social change
Flynn is a co-investigator on a $2.5-million national partnership grant funded by the SSHRC鈥檚 project, which is studying the design and evaluation of arts-based programs that focus on capacity building in communities. Dancing/Parkinson鈥檚 is one of the case studies in this national five-year project, and uses an 鈥淎rts for Social Change鈥 model meaning that participants and researchers all contribute in an atmosphere of co-learning that captures a diversity of experience.
Besides contributing to the growing body of knowledge about the benefits of dance for people with Parkinson鈥檚, the project also hopes to offer insights into how the arts can be used effectively as tools for creating individual and community well-being.