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| George Turnbull. (Danny Abriel Photo) |
When Dr. George Turnbull was a young man he followed a girl to Africa. At that time he was a physiotherapy student from the Royal Infirmary in Glasgow, Scotland.
He worked clinically for a while in what was then Rhodesia. The land was gorgeous. He enjoyed it there, but his education needed completing. So he moved on to the University of Manitoba.
From there, he continued on to AV俱乐部 for his master鈥檚 degree, and then returned to Africa for his PhD from Rhodes University in South Africa. Now he鈥檚 back at AV俱乐部, where he's been for the past 30 years, as the Associate Dean in the Faculty of Health Professions.
Dr. Turnbull believes in serendipity.
When he first began his physiotherapy research, it was centred on rehabilitating stroke victims. But one day, a Parkinson鈥檚 group asked him to bring some of his AV俱乐部 students out to provide physiotherapy. 鈥淪o I did that,鈥� says Dr. Turnbull. 鈥淎nd before long it was becoming a regular occurrence and I thought, 笔补谤办颈苍蝉辞苍鈥檚鈥�鈥�.鈥�
Parkinson鈥檚 is a progressive neurological disease affecting an estimated 8,400 people in the Maritimes. Dr. Turnbull describes this as a disease characterized by stiffness of muscle, slowness of movement, loss of balance and various other symptoms. 鈥淚 started to think about (Parkinson鈥檚) and how you might deal with a group of people who were actually going to deteriorate over time,鈥� says Dr. Turnbull. 鈥淥ne of the things that I came up with is that if we could see people with Parkinson鈥檚 early, shortly after the diagnosis, we could get them exercising.鈥�
Dr. Turnbull believes in building up a patient鈥檚 endurance and strength so that when they start to lose to the condition, they have more to draw upon. Medication, Dr. Turnbull believes, is not the only way to combat Parkinson鈥檚.
This is an approach he calls 鈥渉ealth promotion鈥� and he educates Parkinson鈥檚 patients about it at his free Maritime Parkinson鈥檚 Clinic.
Carole A. Hartzman has been one of Dr. Turnbull鈥檚 patients at the clinic for the past seven years. 鈥淗e operates outside of the box,鈥� explains Ms. Hartzman. 鈥淗e thinks creatively.鈥� Exercise is the most important factor at the Maritime Parkinson鈥檚 Clinic, but fun is a very close second.
Sometimes he surprises patients by advising dance lessons to help with balance, or voice lessons to maintain vocal chords.
In a sense, this sort of customization is also the way Dr. Turnbull approaches things in the kitchen; cooking is another one of his passions. He starts his culinary creations from scratch, regarding recipes as a broad guideline. 鈥淚鈥檓 not talking curry powder here,鈥� Dr. Turnbull begins. 鈥淚鈥檓 talking ground cumin, ground coriander, garam masala, ground-up turmeric. The whole thing鈥檚 from scratch, that鈥檚 the fun part.鈥� If you haven鈥檛 yet guessed, he really likes cooking Indian and Middle Eastern dishes.
He learned to cook when he couldn鈥檛 find the聽kind of restaurants he liked. Now he spends the better part of his weekends at home hovering over the stove with his family close by.
Speaking of family, Dr. Turnbull is about to become a grandfather.
But in terms of his Parkinson鈥檚 research, the topic of passing on the torch to the next generation is not quite so pleasant. 鈥淭he difficult part is it鈥檚 not very sexy for the new people coming along,鈥� says Dr. Turnbull. 鈥淏ringing up the next generation in terms of succession planning has not been easy.鈥�
This places even more importance on fundraising efforts such as the Parkinson Society Maritime Region鈥檚 annual fundraising gala. The gala, which took place last night (Thursday, May 20),聽paid tribute to Dr. Turnbull as a Parkinson鈥檚 pioneer.
Yes, Dr. Turnbull has an intimate understanding of Parkinson鈥檚 and its effects on the body. But his response to the fright of Parkinson鈥檚 may surprise some. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not as terrible as you might think,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 say to (the patient), 鈥榶ou know, of all the neurological diseases, this is the one to have because at least it鈥檚 manageable鈥�.鈥�
To learn more about Parkinson鈥檚 disease and the Parkinson Society Maritime Region, please visit .