Live Well with Parkinson's

Problem

People with Parkinson’s often have long gaps between specialist appointments, with limited support for managing symptoms day to day. UCL’s PD-Care research group had developed an evidence-based self-management programme and needed a digital platform to deliver it at scale, particularly to patients in rural and underserved areas who had fewer options for in-person care.

Approach

I built the toolkit as a Next.js web application, working closely with the UCL research team and with patients throughout. The platform covers symptom tracking, medication and activity logging, wellbeing goal-setting, appointment preparation, and educational content about treatments and daily living. The design prioritises accessibility and clarity, given the range of motor and cognitive difficulties that users may experience. The toolkit was deployed for use in a national clinical trial (the PD-Care Study), where participants used it between appointments over several months.

Outcome

In the trial, 82% of participants reported using the toolkit frequently and 87% found it helpful for managing their symptoms. Participants showed improvements in mobility and mental health, and the data indicated fewer A&E admissions among users. The toolkit is now being prepared for wider NHS adoption.