Clinical Support
In addition to basic and clinical research the BC Epilepsy Society is committed to providing direct support to epilepsy clinics in BC. Awards made to the Vancouver General Hospital and BC Children’s Hospital have been used to provide staff and equipment for both adult and pediatric epilepsy clinics.
2014
Awardee: VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation
Award: $150,000
Use of funds:
Mental health issues in people with epilepsy often go unrecognized and/or untreated. Thus in 2014, the BC Epilepsy Society donated $150,000 to the VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation. This money was used to fund two years of part time clinical psychology services to adult patients with epilepsy or non-epileptic events who were being followed through the VGH Epilepsy clinic. Thanks to this funding, Dr. Mark Weinberg was able to provide longitudinal counseling services to adult patients with epilepsy or non-epileptic events who were struggling with issues such as depression or anxiety. Clinic patients and physicians both have provided overwhelming positive feedback, and have been most appreciative of the service.
In addition to Clinical Research, funding awarded to Epilepsy Fellows allowed them to perform clinical work, assessing children and adolescents with complex epilepsy in specialized clinics:
- Epilepsy Surgery
- Vagus Nerve Stimulation
- Ketongeic Diet
- Tuberous Sclerosis Complex Clinic
- In-patient units
- Reading video-EEG recordings
- Ambulatory EEG recordings
- Routine EEGs
Work-up of children for epilepsy surgery (intraoperative recordings directly from the brain surface and brain mapping by direct stimulation of the brain).