New resource: Working with underserved areas and marginalized populations

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The MDS website has expanded with the launch of a new section dedicated to Underserved Areas and Populations, offering practical resources to support movement disorders professionals working in high-barrier and resource-limited settings worldwide.

An initiative of the Web Editorial Board, the new section seeks to address persistent inequities in access to diagnosis, treatment, and specialist care. Rather than serving as an exhaustive library, the section is designed as a focused, user-friendly guide that brings together curated, high-impact tools and research to address real-world challenges clinicians, healthcare professionals, and researchers encounter in daily practice.

The content is organized into three core domains:

Underserved Areas - Addressing geographic barriers such as rural and remote regions where infrastructure, workforce capacity, and specialist access may be limited or environmental exposures and infection spread may bear specific risks. Marginalized Populations - Highlighting groups that face additional service barriers regardless of location, including socioeconomic disadvantage and cultural or linguistic minority status, religious beliefs or genetic disparities. Other Resources - Presenting current offerings such as relevant educational sessions and events as well as no-fee and reduced fee membership opportunities.

In total, the section includes 13 subcategory pages, each with resources selected to support navigating diagnostic complexity, addressing treatment access limitations, addressing workforce shortages, and providing culturally responsive care. The aim is to provide tools that are immediately relevant across diverse practice settings.

The materials were curated and reviewed by the Web Editorial Board, led by then co-chair Prof. Susanne A. Schneider, with additional oversight from other MDS groups and stakeholders to ensure clarity, accuracy, and alignment with the International Parkinson and Movement Disorders Society's broader priorities.

The launch of the Underserved Areas and Populations section reflects the MDS’s continued commitment to advancing equity in movement disorders care.

Members are encouraged to explore the new pages and share feedback to help strengthen this evolving resource.

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