News

The Annual General Meeting of Brainwave The Irish Epilepsy Association (trading as Epilepsy Ireland) took place on 30^th September 2021. For the second year in a row, the meeting was held via Zoom.

Epilepsy Ireland have written to the Minister for Education regarding a longstanding issue which faces students with epilepsy who are sitting state exams – i.e, the leaving cert. 

Under current arrangements, students with epilepsy who experience a seizure during their exam – which renders them unable to complete that exam – cannot resit the exam within the same cycle. Instead, they must wait a year to sit the exam during the next sitting of the leaving cert.

'Epilepsy in English' workshops are a series of four events designed to break down barriers between all stakeholders in epilepsy research.

Today is SUDEP Action Day – a day in which Epilepsy Ireland raise awareness of a rare but devastating aspect of Epilepsy.

SUDEP stands for Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy, and it is estimated that between 21-44 people sadly pass away due to SUDEP each year in Ireland.

In the Dáil last Thursday, our ongoing campaign regarding outstanding matters concerning Sodium Valproate (Epilim) was raised during Leaders Questions in Dáil Éireann.

The matter was raised by Laois-Offaly TD, Deputy Carol Nolan.

With Epilepsy Ireland entering the final days of #RoseWeek - our national fundraising week - and as we seek to maximise donations for our work towards a society where no person's life is limited by epilepsy, we have highlighted 7 reasons why you should support our work and make a vital donation. Please have a read and plant a Rose in your home county in support of Epilepsy Ireland.

Media Release

Epilepsy Ireland have appealed to the public to support their National Fundraising Week, Rose Week, which takes place from the 11th -17th October.

The charity has experienced a 50% drop in fundraising since the start of the pandemic, alongside an increase in demand for their one-to-one support services for people with epilepsy and their families.

With the budget taking place this coming Tuesday, Epilepsy Ireland have once again written to Ministers Heather Humphreys, Paschal Donohoe and Michael McGrath regarding our Budget proposals to improve access to Free Travel passes for people with epilepsy.

We believe our proposals are both fair & reasonable – and that Budget 22 represents the perfect opportunity to address this longstanding issue for people with epilepsy and their families.

Epilepsy Ireland are joining with patient organisations across Ireland to support the #resolutionforrare campaign.

The campaign is being co-ordinated by our colleagues in Rare Diseases Ireland and aims to have Irish delegates of the United Nations to support a resolution addressing the challenges of persons living with rare diseases & their families.

Epilepsy Ireland are proud to support the ‘Patients Deserve Better’ campaign.

The campaign has been devised by our colleagues in the Neurological Alliance of Ireland. The campaign aims to highlight the importance of neurology nurse posts across Ireland and crucially, is calling for action to increase neurology nurse capacity in our health service.