[Status and development of the role as Parkinson Nurse in Germany - an online survey]

Status and development of the role as Parkinson Nurse in Germany - an online survey Abstract.

In Germany there is a course for Parkinson Nurses (PN) since 2006. Content, structure and organization of their tasks have not yet been systematically described for Germany.

How is the typical working day of PN organised in Germany? Which tasks do they have? Which conditions are promoting or inhibiting for their work?

Among the graduates of the course, an online survey was conducted from September to November 2016. 39 questionnaires were analysed descriptively (response rate 34 %).

52 % of PN work in specialist hospitals and 26 % work in hospitals of maximum medical care. Only 29 % work according to a concept and only 23 % have a job description. 21 % of respondents no longer work as PN. Counselling and education, information on medication management, educational advertising on Parkinson' disease as well as training of other professionals are at the centre of their work. The activities usually focus the work in the institution; a trans-sectoral support for people with Parkinson's disease is rare.

In the future, concepts and job descriptions should be stored in the institutions, which are oriented towards a cross-institutional orientation framework. On the basis of a common understanding of roles it is possible to facilitate networking of the PN as well as the co-operation with other specialists. The curriculum at an academic level leads to the necessary competencies.