Teaching about Epilepsy

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Specializes in Peids.

I am a school nurse for a 6-8 grade. I was just asked to teach all of 6th grade about epilepsy. There is a new child coming into the school that has major epilepsy. How would you teach other school kids about epilepsy? Any ideas would be great.

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Specializes in Pedi.

The Epilepsy Foundation has a ton of programs specifically for this. Check out their website. 6th-8th grade is old enough to understand. Explain to them what epilepsy is, what kinds of seizures they might see their classmate having and what they should/shouldn't do when one happens.

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Specializes in School Nursing, Public Health, Home Care.

Be sure the family has agreed to have their child identified if you're going to speak to his situation specifically.

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Specializes in Pedi.
Be sure the family has agreed to have their child identified if you're going to speak to his situation specifically.

Ugh when I was working per diem at a school, we had a student with epilepsy whose mother didn't want ANYONE other than the school nurse to know. I wasn't the full time school nurse and didn't have any contact with the student's mother but I adamantly disagreed. It was necessary for other faculty/staff to be aware of the child's condition since he spent far more time with his teachers than he did with the nurse... and this was a boarding school with a campus. The faculty at his side would need to respond if he had a seizure while the nurse was traipsing across campus to get to him.

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Specializes in School Nursing, Public Health, Home Care.

I was thinking more of the other students. I agree that faculty should be informed. Our parents sign a form annually that says health information will be shared with pertinent staff.

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Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.

The epilepsy foundation has an education program directed at 5th&6th graders. Let me see if I can find the link.

Here's one:

http://www.akfus.org/programs/fifth-grade-program

And the epilepsy foundation of NJ has the S.H.A.R.E. Fifth grade education program. Can't pull link from my phone

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Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.

Here are the epilepsy foundation of NJ trainings, including staff training:

http://www.efnj.com/what-we-offer/training-events/

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Specializes in Peids.

Thank you guy so much. The links that JustBeachyNurse shared are great.

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