Epilepsy Ireland's new Strategic Plan for the next five years has been published.
Officially launched by Ireland Rugby Head Coach Joe Schmidt this week, the Plan has been developed over an 18-month period with input from a wide range of stakeholders, including Epilepsy Ireland members, service users, volunteers, health professionals and staff.
Over the next five years, we aim to protect and maintain existing services and activities, while also developing in new directions to ensure we continue to meet the needs of people with epilepsy and their families in Ireland.
We have identified six Strategic Aims which together form the framework for the Plan. These are:
- Providing support and information services;
- Communicating, raising awareness and advocating about epilepsy;
- Providing training and education;
- Undertaking and supporting epilepsy research;
- Raising the necessary funds for our work;
- Operating a stable, transparent and accountable organisation meeting best practice standards.
Built into the six Strategic Aims are 21 Strategic Objectives that we will endeavour to meet during the five year period of the plan, subject to suitable funding streams becoming available and being maintained.
Some of the key themes contained in the plan include:
- The need to continue to advocate for the availability of neurological services for people with epilepsy.
- The continued need to provide timely and accurate information and support for adults with epilepsy and for parents of children with epilepsy
- The need to consider groups with particular needs (people with epilepsy and an intellectual disability, those with mental health co-morbidities, older people, etc.).
- The need to engage and support younger people (teens and young adults with epilepsy)
- The need to ensure that people with epilepsy and their families are central to our work through their volunteering, participation in consultation groups, advocacy and fundraising.
- The need for capacity building, peer leadership and volunteering approaches to be developed for people with epilepsy
Our Plan is ambitious and many challenges lie ahead, particularly in resourcing our 21 objectives but with the support of existing and potential funders; our members, volunteers and fundraisers; the wider epilepsy community and the general public, we believe that we can continue to work towards a society in which no person's life is limited by epilepsy.
Please download a copy of the Epilepsy Ireland Strategic Plan 2017-21 below.