Knocking Out Parkinson’s with Rock Steady Boxing City of Port St. Lucie wins 2019 Innovation in Health Award and Overall Best in Innovation Award
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City of Port St. Lucie Parks and Recreation for Rock Steady Boxing
arkinson’s disease — a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by symptoms such as tremors, muscle rigidity and gait and balance problems — affects more than 10 million people worldwide. According to the Parkinson’s Foundation (www. parkinson.org), nearly 1 million people in the United States will be living with Parkinson’s by 2020, and the likelihood of developing the disease increases with age. It is estimated that in the United States alone, the combined direct and indirect cost of Parkinson’s disease — including treatment, social security payments and lost income — is nearly $52 billion per year. As the seventh-largest city in Florida and an area with a large senior population, the city of Port St. Lucie was determined to find a way to help its residents with Parkinson’s. The City of Port St. Lucie Parks and Recreation Department attests that it was compassion that impelled it to respond to the community’s requests for services to assist in mitigating the effects of Parkinson’s disease by offering Rock Steady Boxing. Once it established that Rock Steady Boxing is a proven,
effective and proactive aid for those with Parkinson’s disease, the agency recognized the need to offer the program at an affordable rate to ensure individuals from all socioeconomic demographics within the community could participate. Rock Steady Boxing (RSB) — a non-contact, boxing-based fitness program — has been proven to slow the progression of Parkinson’s by strengthening muscles and creating new neuropaths, while exercise in general is known to improve mental health. According to Anne Stadius, recreation supervisorfitness for city of Port St. Lucie, “Exercises designed for those with Parkinson’s disease, while intense and challenging, build both confidence and strength in a nonjudgmental social environment.” After thorough research of the program and assessment of the community’s needs, the City of Port St. Lucie Parks and Recreation Department successfully implemented RSB to help improve the lives of community members living with Parkinson’s disease.
Getting Started Planning to bring the RSB program to the city of Port St. Lucie was two years in the
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Parks & Recreation
PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF CITY OF PORT ST. LUCIE
By Lindsay Collins
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