American Parkinson Disease Association

To provide the support, education, and research that will help everyone impacted by Parkinson's disease live life to the fullest.

GOAL 1:
Expand constituent-centric, evidence-based, and impactful programs, services, and research that improves quality of life throughout the disease continuum.

GOAL 2:
Cultivate partnerships and collaborations to expand and elevate mission delivery to meet Parkinson community needs.

GOAL 3:
Expand reach to under-served, under-studied and under-represented communities to promote health equity, and access to care, and provide education and support.

1. Deliver Programs and Services – Provide innovative signature programs and services to all impacted by Parkinson's across the disease continuum and increase program participation annually
2. Leverage our grassroots, community-based network to ensure comprehensive delivery of the four key components of our mission (health & wellness, education, information & referral, and research) to increase PD awareness and engagement.
3. Support Parkinson's Disease Research – Increase APDA research funding allocation by at least 20% annually and advance research efforts in Parkinson's through continued advocacy, collaboration and funding of the most promising clinicians and scientists
4. Increase Public Awareness of Parkinson's disease and APDA – Increase the public's awareness of Parkinson's disease as a major health issue, and of APDA as a leader in the Parkinson's disease arena, by broadening the reach of APDA messaging
4. Increase Revenue to Support Mission Delivery – Expand mission delivery and broaden organizational impact through at least revenue growth in all fundraising campaigns and initiatives

APDA is the largest grassroots network dedicated to fighting Parkinson's disease (PD) and works tirelessly to assist the more than 1 million people in th United States with PD. APDA's nationwide network features Chapters located across the United States that serve as the first place to go after diagnosis as a source of support and education throughout the PD journey. APDA also has Information & Referral (I&R) Centers that provide support to people with PD and their families by providing a center and dedicated Coordinator in local medical institutions that provide the gold standard in PD services. APDA uniquely delivers education, support, and patient services to people with Parkinson's and their families each day.

APDA publishes more than 50 brochures and pamphlets available at no cost to the public, most of which are also available in Spanish, and several in Simplified Chinese. APDA focuses on developing educational materials that address the clinical and psychosocial symptomatology of Parkinson's disease and offer guidance and information for coping with the disease. All materials can be downloaded from our website on our Download Publications Page or may be ordered in hard copy and mailed to you for free.

On the research front, APDA proudly invests in the most promising clinicians and scientific projects focused on the discovery of the cause(s) and finding the cure for Parkinson's disease (PD). APDA is committed to scientific research and has been a funding partner in most major Parkinson's disease scientific breakthroughs, investing more than $55 million in research since 1961. Many APDA-funded researchers have successfully leveraged pilot data to secure multi-million dollar grants through the National Institute of Health.

APDA's focus is to bring the best new talent to the field of PD research through grant programs.

APDA's eight Centers for Advanced Research are located in major academic and medical centers across the country and are intended to strengthen and help to integrate already existing investigative teams. These Centers receive funding to support large research programs which include: research trainees; fellowship programs; early stage discovery programs and later stage clinical translation. These Centers facilitate research which is at the forefront of investigation into the causes, treatments and ultimately the cure(s) for Parkinson's disease.

Through Fiscal Year 2021, APDA has raised and invested more than $226 million to provide outstanding patient services and educational programs, elevate public awareness about the disease, and support research designed to unlock the mysteries of Parkinson’s and ultimately put an end to this disease.

Of the $226 million, more than $170 million has gone to patient services and education, and nearly $55 million has been invested in research funding.

In FY21, more than 23,000 people participated in our educational programs. More than 71,000 took advantage our of ouany in-person and virtual exercise programs. More than 44,000 attneded APDA support groups. More thna 8,500 have downloaded the free APDA Symptom Tracker app to help them better keep track of their symptoms and report them to their doctors.