From Meeting Pope John Paul II To Empowering Parkinson’s Patients: All About Adrian Casha’s Mission
Adrian Casha, who is now a Maltese ambassador for Parkinson’s, had a very special passenger back in 2001 when he was working with Airmalta, when they flew Pope John Paul II to Ciampino in Rome after his visit to Malta.
At the time, the Pope was gravely suffering from Parkinson’s. But little did Adrian know that years later he would also be diagnosed with the same condition.
“I kneeled down while he blessed pictures of my family, I don’t know how to explain this, but I saw a glow emanate from his white robe,” Casha told Lovin Malta.
“He was a saint. You could see his suffering from Parkinson’s Disease, he was really shaking. But he still made an effort to get up from his chair to wave to the crew before he left.”
17 years later, Casha started to feel some strange symptoms: a hardening of his neck muscles, his foot-dragging, sometimes his hand rising involuntarily, fatigue, and worsening handwriting, a neurologist diagnosed him as having Parkinson’s.
The neurologist told his wife, “Did you realise that he has lost his smile?”
Casha has always been very much involved in sport, particularly football having been a referee for 20 years. “My experience as a FIFA Referee for 20 years as well as a UEFA Referee Observer and Referee Coach gave me the opportunity to be involved in international football for several years. I am currently a UEFA Match Delegate and a Vice President at the Malta Football Association.”
But even after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s, he still continued to have an active life.
“With the support of my family, friends, and healthcare professionals as well as my own determination to continue leading an active lifestyle, I am managing to cope well and live a normal life.”
“On 6th October 2022, I won gold for the Parkinson’s World Championship for table tennis. If I didn’t have Parkinson’s, I would not have become a World Champion.”
This positive attitude and athletic resilience has pushed Casha to transcend his physical limitations and keep living his life. Medicine and exercise slowed down the degenerative process.
“I’m lucky, my wife helps me get dressed,” he said. “But when I’m alone, abroad, I just wake up earlier. Give time for the meds to work then get dressed slowly. Sometimes it takes ages just to put on the belt.”
As project manager for Step Up For Parkinson’s, Casha has a new mission.
“We need a new Parkinson’s centre. This is a crucially important step to limit the suffering of the 2,000+ sufferers. By having a one-stop shop for people with this condition, with specialised health professionals, we can cut down congestion which still ends on our health care system and make sure that the patients are getting the right treatment on time.”
“The deployment of specialised nurses, physiotherapists, speech therapists and occupational therapists at a Parkinson’s centre shall see a significant drop in loss of balance leading to hip fractures caused by falls which sometimes have fatal consequences.”
“A specialised care centre can also lessen the number of patients that need to be institutionalised, and get home care instead of ending up in a care home.”
Casha has also been working with ParkinsonNet which is based in the Netherlands. Their mission is to improve lives and guarantee the best possible care for people impacted by Parkinson’s disease.
“Professor Bastiaan Bloem, the founder of this organisation, concluded that we are lacking patient-centred care and he and his team have offered their expertise to put in place a model ideal for a small country,” continued Casha.
Financial help is not readily available although they already have a location ready and are projected to open the centre in October.
“If anyone would like to help we are organising a Telethon today, 7th June, at 11am. Your donations can help to improve the quality of our lives and maybe one day yours or that of someone dear.”
Each step makes us closer to fulfilling the dream of giving a better quality of life to all the wonderful people who dance, dream, and live with us.
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