seizures -Part II

Hello to all,
I continued my presentation today on the signs and symptoms of seizure disorders. The foster grandparents have a vested interest in seizures as they accompany many individuals to activities that have underlying seizure disorders. They were very anxious to learn their role if they were with a patient and a seizure started. We talked about first aid and the importance of getting immediate medical attention.

The suggestion that was shared with them was to look at your watch when you think the individual is seizuring and call for help. I stressed the role of a non medical person with seizure disorders.

The foster grandparents have a nice collaborative effort amongst the group. They are very aware of each foster grandparents schedule and individuals they assist.

I answered all of their questions and asked for more topics of interest. They laughed and said they needed to know more about nutrition and what is a healthy snack. Most of the audience is fairly active and likes to be informed about health foods.

I told them I would be glad to discuss nutrition with a focus on healthy choices. So at their next meeting I will bring healthy and non healthy snacks and test their knowledge.

They are a very interactive audience and I thoroughly enjoy spending time with them.

Seizure Disorders Part 1

Today I presented Part One of Seizure Disorders for the Foster grandparents at Central Wisconsin Center. This topic was requested as there are individuals that live at Central Wisconsin Center that have underlying seizure disorders. I chose to do two parts as there is a plethora of material to be covered when talking about seizure disorders.

I started out by defining the difference between seizures and epilepsy. Much of the audience was familiar with epilepsy as it is a commonly used term. Some of the grandparents have family members or friends that have epilepsy. So they had some personal reference to this condition. I shared statistics about the prevalence, diagnosis of new cases and statistically how many people have seizure disorders. I continued to explain in non-medical terms the cause of seizures including some visuals of the brain and how the electrical conduction system works. I reviewed the causes of epilepsy and the means in which it is diagnosed.  

I emphasized the typical signs and symptoms of epilepsy and the importance of seeking medical attention immediately. I explained the rational for prompt intervention and communication to the supervising nurse.

The foster grandparents seems to enjoy the information I was sharing with them as it will help them with accompanying the individuals that they spend time with at CWC. We ran out of time so Part Two will be presented at their next department meeting.

Thanks.....Cindy