Parkinson’s disease, the most common condition seen by movement disorders specialists, is often difficult and complicated to manage. Specialized training is essential for clinicians who seek to provide optimal care for patients and support for their families.

Professional education programs at NYU Langone’s Fresco Institute for Parkinson’s and Movement Disorders train the next generation of neurologists, nurses, social workers, and other allied health professionals in the best possible care of people with Parkinson’s disease. We also support the development of an engaged and collaborative scientific and clinical community.

International Fresco Conferences

2018 Fresco International Workshop on Synaptic Plasticity and Clinical Advances in Parkinson’s Disease

In November 2018, the Fresco Institute hosted a three and a half–day course focusing on synaptic plasticity, Parkinson’s disease, and neuropsychiatric disorders. In the first two and a half–day workshop, held in Florence, Italy, international experts provided an overview of the scientific advances on different aspects of brain plasticity from bench to bedside.

The sessions explored a possible role of art and music in rehabilitation of neurodegenerative diseases; the relation between genetics, epigenetics, and plasticity, as well as the relation between immunity, inflammation process, and plasticity; novel measures of functional and structural connectivity; and the role of plasticity in the genesis and treatment of psychiatric symptoms.

On the closing day, NYU Langone faculty from the Fresco Institute and a panel of international experts, including the leaders in the Fresco Parkinson Center in Europe, presented didactic lectures, providing an extensive overview of advances in diagnosis and treatment of Parkinson’s disease and related disorders. Participants gained a deeper understanding of plasticity and its relevance to the genesis, diagnosis, and treatment of Parkinson’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.

2016 International Fresco Conference

The Fresco Conference 4th International Workshop on Synaptic Plasticity: From Bench to Bedside was held in Lucca, Italy, on September 12–14, 2016. More than 100 researchers and clinicians from different parts of the world attended the conference in the artfully restored complex of the San Francesco Convent, the campus of the IMT.

Continuing Medical Education

The Fresco Institute offers an annual course for neurologists, physiatrists, psychiatrists, nurses, social workers, and other allied healthcare professionals through NYU School of Medicine’s continuing medical education (CME) courses. The inaugural CME program focused on neuropsychiatric symptoms in Parkinson’s disease and featured experts from the Fresco Institute clinical and research team.

For more information, contact 212-263-4838 or email parkinsons@nyulangone.org.

The Edmond J. Safra Visiting Nurse Faculty Program

The Fresco Institute is a national training site for nurse educators from around the world through the The Edmond J. Safra Visiting Nurse Faculty Program at the Parkinson’s Foundation. This prestigious, 40-hour accredited program trains nurse faculty leaders so they can, in turn, educate nursing students at the baccalaureate level. As a result of this program, more than 8,000 newly trained nurses enter the workforce each year better prepared to care for patients with Parkinson’s disease, their care partners, and families.