
Nursing Studies on the Management of Epilepsy in Children
Chapter from the book:
Sarman,
A.
(ed.)
2025.
Research in Pediatric Health and Disease Nursing-I.
Synopsis
Epilepsy is a chronic neurological health problem that is frequently seen in childhood and can significantly affect the quality of life physically and psychosocially for the child and his/her family. Systematic management of the treatment process of children diagnosed with epilepsy is important to reduce potential problems and control symptom management. Systematic management of the disease can be achieved with the continuity of multidisciplinary work of experienced and specialized health professionals. As in many childhood chronic diseases, nurses play an important role in the management of epilepsy and may not provide the development of literature through various researches. Nurses make important contributions to the management of epilepsy by using various evidence-based practices whose effectiveness has been evaluated by various studies in the care process. Supporting the child and family members with various educational programs, implementation of ketogenic diet program, inclusion of the child and family members in empowerment programs, instant symptom and management skill follow-up with mobile applications, development of coping skills to cope with problems with psychosocial support programs constitute important parts of epilepsy management. These interventions reduce the frequency of seizures, the need for hospitalization and emergency intervention, emotional problems such as stress and anxiety in children, improve the epilepsy self-management skills of children and family members, increase their knowledge and skill levels, and enable children to gain self-confidence in the management of their disease. The results of the study provide evidence that supporting children and their families with interventions whose effectiveness has been evaluated will significantly improve the quality of life by ensuring that the epilepsy management process is maintained positively. It is important and necessary for pediatric nurses to support the child and family with positive interventions with proven efficacy to ensure systematic epilepsy management.