Parkinson’s Foundation Works with Amazon’s Alexa to Make Parkinson’s Disease Information More Accessible
MIAMI & NEW YORK (October 6, 2020) — The Parkinson’s Foundation today announced a collaboration with Amazon’s Alexa to help more people gain access to education and resources related to Parkinson’s disease (PD) in English and Spanish. Alexa is Amazon’s cloud-based voice service available on Amazon Echo devices and third-party devices with Alexa built in. Alexa-enabled devices will now answer questions about Parkinson’s disease citing sources directly from the Parkinson’s Foundation.
“We are thrilled to work with Amazon to move into this exciting world of smart speakers to help even more people gain access to the information about PD they need most,” said John L. Lehr, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Parkinson’s Foundation. “Our hope is that this partnership will help us further reach and better support the PD community throughout every stage of their journey.”
This integration will improve Alexa’s answers about Parkinson’s to better serve people with the disease, their care partners, friends and family members, health professionals and others seeking information or resources. Alexa will be able to answer questions related to Parkinson’s disease directly from Parkinson’s Foundation webpages including key topics like COVID-19 and PD, symptoms and early signs, treatment options, information for the newly diagnosed and more. Questions include ‘Alexa, what is a good resource for Parkinson’s disease’ or ‘Alexa, what should I know about Parkinson’s disease and the coronavirus?’ among others that will share information from the Foundation’s database of resources.
For more information about Amazon’s Alexa visit the Amazon Alexa webpage. Learn more about the Parkinson’s Foundation and Parkinson’s disease at Parkinson.org or call 1-800-4PD-INFO (473-4636).
###
About the Parkinson’s Foundation
The Parkinson’s Foundation makes life better for people with Parkinson’s disease by improving care and advancing research toward a cure. In everything we do, we build on the energy, experience and passion of our global Parkinson’s community. Since 1957, the Parkinson’s Foundation has invested more than $400 million in Parkinson’s research and clinical care. Connect with us on Parkinson.org, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or call (800) 4PD-INFO (473-4636).
About Parkinson’s Disease
Affecting an estimated one million Americans and 10 million worldwide, Parkinson’s disease is the second-most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer’s and is the 14th-leading cause of death in the U.S. It is associated with a progressive loss of motor control (e.g., shaking or tremor at rest and lack of facial expression), as well as non-motor symptoms (e.g., depression and anxiety). There is no cure for Parkinson’s and 60,000 new cases are diagnosed each year in the U.S. alone.