After receiving a diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease (PD), many people assume that their working lives are over -- or soon will be. But many want to continue to work, either because they are in their prime earning years, they need the insurance coverage, or they love what they do and thrive on the stimulation of being around other people.

At Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, computerized motion analysis focuses on the analysis of human walking (gait analysis) and upper-extremity function during activities of daily living.

LIFE Center Manager Lisa Rosen co-founded the peer mentoring program in 2003. There had always been some informal mentoring going on as patients talked with other patients or hospital volunteers with disabilities, but Rosen realized there was a need for a more structured program.