It became apparent to Bob he had a problem during a golf presentation; his right hand started shaking but not the left and as he put names on the winners board, his writing got smaller and smaller, a classic sign of Parkinson’s.

Along with the diagnosis was the news that the average life expectancy of those with Parkinson’s was 12 years, but 23 years later Bob is still a regular on the boardwalk and at the golf club.

“I went to my GP and then to Sydney for an MRI and they confirmed it was Parkinson’s. I’ve been fighting it every day since and I won’t let up. I haven’t let it impact my life,” Bob said.

Parkinson’s is a movement and mood disorder typically presenting with symptoms such as slowness of movement, muscle rigidity, instability, tremor, depression and anxiety. April 11 is World Parkinson’s Disease Day when the aim is to raise awareness of the disease, the need for more research and also the need at a local level for neurological nurses. 

But Parkinson’s has not stopped Bob from keeping active and he attributes much of his success to plenty of exercise and good diet.

“Exercise is really important. I couldn’t run a marathon any more but I walk and play golf three times a week.”

Bob was the Pambula Merimbula Golf Club captain for four years and had a handicap of just 4. Nowadays he still manages a respectable 23 handicap.

“It’s one of the things that keeps me going. I’ve had to change my putting style because Parkinson’s tends to affect one side of the body,” Bob explained.

However it hasn’t stopped him taking good aim with an iron to send the ball on its way down the fairway.

It is 200 years since Parkinson’s was recognised as a health condition and although in recent years there have been big advances in medication, both the cause and a cure remain unknown.

“Australian research has been leading the way with developments in new drugs,” Bob said.

Normally, there are brain cells in the human brain that produce dopamine. Dopamine helps humans to have smooth, co-ordinated muscle movements. When approximately 60 to 80 per cent of the dopamine-producing cells are damaged, and do not produce enough dopamine, the motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease appear.

He said a manufactured dopamine used to be the drug used for sufferers but now there are drugs which encourage the dopamine to release slowly.

“You take four a day and they encourage the brain to make dopamine,” he said.

But Bob is hoping to be put onto a more recent development which is a pump system that slowly releases the drug in very small amounts, much like the pump systems used for some type 1 diabetics.

“I’m hoping to get on it, there’s a group at Westmead working on it and for me it’s really exciting,” he said.

Nine years ago Bob started the Bega Valley Parkinson Support Group which has about 50 sufferers and carers who meet monthly to discuss the issues associated with Parkinson’s, hear from medical professionals and simply enjoy each other’s company.

There are 71 support groups in NSW but Parkinson’s NSW community co-ordinator Melanie Browning is very familiar with the Bega Valley group.

“They’re quite a large support group and they are more like a group of friends,” she said.

But beyond the support groups run by dedicated groups of carers and sufferers, funds are stretched.

Ms Browning said that access to neurological nurses would be of great benefit to sufferers everywhere.

In an effort to prove the value of such nurses, Parkinson’s NSW is funding nurses in Shoalhaven and Coffs Harbour.

“Our aim is to get neurological nurses throughout NSW. The UK has neurological nurses throughout the regions who visit patients. The nurses pay for themselves. Having Nina (one of the nurses) in Shoalhaven has reduced admissions to hospital. She helps to keep people at home for longer and have a better quality of life,” Ms Browning said.

She hopes to convince the government of the benefits of neurological nurses.

To mark the 200th anniversary Parkinson’s NSW has joined the global Parkinson’s community to raise awareness of the disease that affects 80,000 Australians.

The most common age for a Parkinson’s diagnosis is 65 while 20 per cent of those diagnosed are under the age of 50 and 10 per cent under age 40.