For over a decade, the 26th March has been dedicated to Epilepsy Action’s ‘Purple Day’. This year was no different, and our Epilepsy Specialist Community Nurses were involved in raising awareness, busting myths, and challenging our colleagues with a quiz. All to support this year’s focus - Children with epilepsy.
Did you know?
“Around 1 in every 220 children in the UK will have a diagnosis of epilepsy. That’s an average of 1 child with epilepsy in every primary school and 5 in every secondary school.”
Source: Epilepsy Action
Epilepsy in childhood is more common than many people may think.
So, we asked our Epilepsy Specialist Community Nurses what role they play to support children and families. This is what they said:
“It is an important part of the role of Epilepsy Nurse to be an advocate of children and young people with the condition. Urban myths, legends and folklore around epilepsy may sound slightly amusing or silly, but ignorance can be the difference between someone having a safe recovery from a seizure or things going very wrong.
Also, children with epilepsy should be able to have a happy and relatively regular life. However, some do not because of remaining prejudice that can lead to social exclusion. It’s sad really, because prejudice and exclusion could be eliminated if people knew more about epilepsy and had a better understanding of those who live with the condition.”
We also asked, how does Purple Day benefit people with epilepsy?
“Epilepsy day gives us an additional opportunity to dispel myths and to bring this much misunderstood long term condition out into the light. Giving friends, colleagues, and the public an opportunity to ask questions and speak about it.
Flying the purple flag, the internationally recognised colour of the condition, invites discussion, and helps to set us on the path of normalising life for those with one of the many forms of epilepsy. We also shared the ‘Brain Power’ quiz, which is just one example of a tool that we can use to raise awareness and increase people’s understanding."
How much do you know about Epilepsy? Complete the quiz now to find out.
Also, if you are looking for more information or resources, visit Epilepsy Action to read more about:
- What kinds of epilepsy affect children?
- Can epilepsy start in the teenage years
- What treatments are available for children with epilepsy
- What is epilepsy care like in the UK for children and young people?
- Will epilepsy affect a child’s childhood and schooling?
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