Background
What we are
The Managing Epilepsy Well (MEW) Network, originally established in October 2007, is a thematic research network
of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Epilepsy Program and Prevention Research Centers (PRC) Program to expand epilepsy self-management research.
Thematic research networks are funded by the CDC or other Health and Human Services (HHS) agencies to promote collaboration on specific health issues or research in a specific population group. These health promotion and disease prevention research networks typically focus on gaps in knowledge or research related to public health practice.
During its first year of funding, the MEW Network was composed of two academic centers: Emory University and the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. In its second year, two new sites were supported: the University of Michigan and the University of Washington. In 2012, two new sites joined the network: Case Western Reserve University and the Prevention Research Center at Dartmouth .
Emory University has served as the coordinating center for network activities since 2007.
What is Managing Epilepsy Well?Managing epilepsy well means †:
- Learning to take medications as prescribed;
- Identifying factors that may affect seizure control, and modifying lifestyle accordingly to help manage unpredictable seizures and prevent injury;
- Taking steps to prevent or cope with the consequences of seizures on health and daily life, while managing stigma and other barriers to independent living.
Self-management does not mean that people manage their health independently, but that positive health outcomes are best achieved by an active partnership between the persons who live with the condition and their health care team.
† We adapted this definition from the Living Well with Epilepsy II conference proceeding (p. 18). Go to http://www.cdc.gov/Epilepsy/pdfs/living_well_2003.pdf for the full text of the conference proceedings.
