The Research Center of Excellence is a part of the Rush University Medical Center, Section of Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders. Through innovative, interdisciplinary, patient- and family-centered care, our Research Center of Excellence provides multidisciplinary specialty patient care services, educational training for fellows and trainees, and research on movement disorders with prominent neuropsychiatric features like dementia with Lewy bodies, Parkinson’s disease, atypical parkinsonian disorders, and Huntington’s disease.

Our team includes a movement disorders neurologist, a physician assistant (PA), a nurse, neuropsychologists, a psychiatrist, social worker, and allied health professionals (in physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, and nutrition). Team members work together to help families plan the best possible care for all stages of the disease, including diagnosis, treatment, access to observational and clinical trials, identification of community resources, and connection to education and support programs. The Rush program also conducts observational and interventional research, funded by federal, foundation, philanthropic, and other grants, to advance our understanding of Lewy body disease and improve the treatments and outcomes of people with Lewy body disease. Ongoing research includes federally-funded, multi-center, prospective studies of Lewy body disease cognitive, imaging, and biomarker data to better understand the course of this disease and build stronger foundations for future treatments. Additionally, Dr. Fleisher is studying novel models of care to reach individuals with LBD and their families who become disconnected from care as the disease progresses. By building new and exciting partnerships with healthcare providers in geriatrics, palliative care, and spiritual care, the team at Rush strives to redefine what the best possible comprehensive care for LBD can look like for patients and families.