Neuro Challenge Foundation for Parkinson’s in partnership with the Parkinson’s Disease Treatment Center of SWFL proudly presents our 2026 Charlotte Fall Symposium. It will be held on Friday, November 20th, 2026, at 8:30 AM. Admission is FREE, but registration is strongly recommended as seating is limited. Those attending the program will enjoy five interesting and education presentations.
Sergio Valdivia, PT, DPT, will present “Tailoring your Physical Exercises to Your Case of Parkinson’s Disease.” Sergio earned a Bachelor’s degree in Physical Therapy from the University of Chile. He has practiced in Southwest Florida for more than 30 years and has specialized in caring for patients with Parkinson’s Disease and other movement disorders since 1996. He was a charter member on the original team for Florida’s first multidisciplinary program for patients with Parkinson’s Disease and movement disorders. This was the first program of its kind in Florida and one of the first in the nation. The program was developed through the Outpatient Rehabilitation Program at Bon Secours St. Joseph Hospital in Port Charlotte and Dr. Ramon Gil was the Medical Director. His interest in movement disorders and physical therapy inspired him to continue his education and earn a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from the University of St. Augustine, FL.
Betty Scanlon, Tai Chi Master Trainer, NP will be presenting “Empower Yourself with Tai Chi”, a comprehensive look at the martial art. Betty is a retired Nurse Practitioner and Veteran, having served in the Air Force. Afterwards, she began working in a busy Fort Myers pediatric practice until 2022. She started practicing and teaching Tai Chi in 2004 and became a Master Trainer for the Tai Chi Health Institute in 2013. She offers instructor training as well as in-person and virtual classes in all twelve of the Tai Chi health forms. Having experienced the stress reduction benefits of Tai Chi herself, Betty highly recommends this practice as a lifestyle change to enhance physical, psychological, and emotional health.
Ramon A. Gil, MD. Medical Director, Parkinson’s Disease Treatment Center of SWFL Diplomate, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology Diplomate, American Board of Internal Medicine. He is the Course Director and will be presenting both “While Finding a Cure, 10 Tips to Better Manage Your Parkinson’s” and “Imagine Your Days with More Continuous Good On Time.”
Dr. Ramon A. Gil is a Diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, and Diplomate of the American Board of Internal Medicine practicing Neurology in SW Florida, since 1989 and has been organizing these educational programs for over 25 years.
Dr. Gil was born in New York, NY and raised in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic. He graduated with honors (“Magna Cum Laude”) from the School of Medicine at the “Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra” in 1981. He enrolled in the Internal Medicine program at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan from 1983 to 1986, and subsequently attended the Neurology Residency program at Hahnemann University Hospital in Philadelphia, PA, from 1986 to 1989.
Dr. Gil has always had special interest in Movement Disorders: Parkinson’s disease and related conditions, Tremor, Spasticity and Dystonia. Since the mid 1990’s, his practice has been centered in these areas and neurodegenerative Dementias such as Alzheimer’s and Lewy Body Disease. He has also attended numerous educational programs to further his clinical skills in this rather dynamic and progressive field of neurology. He joined the Movement Disorder Society in 1997 and has established strong relationships with worldwide authorities in this area. He was the Medical Director and one of the Founding Members of “The Movement Disorders Society of SW Florida” (non-for-profit organization in operation until 2007).
Dr. Gil has vast experience in clinical research, participating as Principal Investigator. His practice is the only non-academic site in SW Florida, participating (so far) in more than 150 clinical trials (phases II to IV) in the field of Parkinson’s disease, other movement disorders as well as, Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.
William George Ondo, MD, will be our special guest speaker, presenting the subject of the “Current Status of the Research Finding the Cure for Parkinson’s Disease.” Dr. Ondo, is the Director of the Movement Disorder Clinic at the Houston Methodist Hospital, and is a Professor of Neurology at Weill Cornell Medical School at Texas A&M. He is interested in all areas of adult and pediatric movement disorder research and has served as primary, treating, and sub-investigator for many research projects involving those disease states. He has authored more than 340 original articles, review articles, and book chapters, as well as editing four movement disorder textbooks. His current research interests include Parkinson’s Disease, Restless Leg Syndrome, tremors, and the use of Botulinum toxins.
Parkinson’s Disease (PD) affect more than 10 million people worldwide with one million of those in the United States alone. In the six Florida counties that Neuro Challenge serves, over 10,000 individuals have been diagnosed with the disease.
PD is the second-most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer’s.
The major signs of PD include progressive motor problems with slowness of movements shaking or tremor, rigidity or stiffness, reduced facial expression and changes in gait/balance. Patients with PD also experience non-motor symptoms (e.g., sleep disturbances, depression and anxiety, low blood pressure and cognitive problems, among others).
The treatment of PD is remarkably better than it was just 15 years ago. Novel drugs and new formulations of old drugs provide patients with a much better response to treatment. The newest being a once-a-day pill just approved by the FDA. Tavapadon or (Juvmo), is a first-in-class dopamine agonist designed to improve the symptoms of PD and it reduces “off time”.
The incidence of PD is rapidly increasing around the world. It is estimated that 90,000 new cases are diagnosed each year in the United States.
Please join us at our Charlotte County Fall Symposium at the Charlotte Harbor Event & Conference Center at 75 Taylor, Punta Gorda, Florida 33950 on Friday November 20th, 2026. Admission is FREE, but registration is strongly recommended as seating is limited. Please register at www.neurochallenge.org, call 941-926-6413 or via email at: office@parkinsonsfl.com
Neuro Challenge is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization crated in 2008 to improve the quality of like of people with Parkinson’s disease and their caregivers today. Neuro Challenge provides individualized care advising offering community resource referrals, education, therapeutic and support programs both online and in Southwest Florida including Sarasota, Manatee, Pinellas, Highlands, Marion, and Charlotte counties. Neuro Challenge hosts The Parkinson’s Expo, the largest single day free PD event in the US, held annually in Manatee County, Fl.
All Neuro Challenge services and programs are offered at no cost to people with PD and their loved ones. Visit www.neurochallenge.org or call 941-926-6413 to learn more.