UK Epilepsy Program To Offer Continuing Education, Patient Information

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Nov. 9, 2011) — The UK HealthCare Comprehensive Epilepsy Program this week will host two programs at the University of Kentucky for patients, caregivers and health care providers, as part of Epilepsy Awareness Month. 

On Friday, Nov. 11, in partnership with the Commonwealth Neurological Society, the UK epilepsy program will host an epilepsy symposium  in the new Pavilion A of the UK Albert B. Chandler Hospital. The symposium will be broadcast live to other areas, including St. Claire Regional Medical Center in Morehead and the Universidad San Francisco de Quito in Ecuador.

This program will be the first in the nation to offer continuing medical education credits through the American Academy of Neurology. 

In addition to UK epileptogists Dr. Sid Kapoor, Dr. G. Qutubuddin Khan and Dr. Meriem Bensalem-Owen, guest presenters will include internationally renowned faculty from Harvard Medical School, the University of Virginia and the Cleveland Clinic.

"This program will focus on improving the quality of care delivered to patients with epilepsy," Bensalem-Owen said. "In addition to showcasing our beautiful new hospital, we wanted to host a high-quality program with terrific guest speakers, and to provide CME locally to health care providers."

On Saturday, Nov. 12, an information session for epilepsy patients and caregivers will be presented in partnership with the Epilepsy Foundation Kentuckiana. The session will take place from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m in the Charles T. Wethington Building. Rachel Mitchell-Ward, a registered nurse at UK, will be coordinating this event. The event is free and open to the public.

Experts will be on hand to answer questions on a variety of topics, including seizure types and classification, mood and epilepsy, EEG testing, clinical trials, and surgical options, and to address specific issues concerning children and women with epilepsy.

"This is a great opportunity for individuals with seizures and their caretakers to ask questions directly to health care providers specializing in the treatment of epilepsy," Bensalem-Owen said. "We hope that this event will help bring people together, improve networking and raise awareness in the fight against epilepsy."

To register for the Nov. 12 information session, call 1-800-333-8874.   

MEDIA CONTACT: Jodi Whitaker, (859) 257-5307;  jodi.whitaker@uky.edu