Paediatric epilepsy nursing service

About the service

The paediatric epilepsy nursing service provides specialist support to children who have a diagnosis of epilepsy or who are suspected to have epilepsy, and their families, in the Barnsley area. We are a community based service and provide support in a variety of settings including patients’ homes, schools, nurseries, hospital clinics or over the telephone.

We work closely with our partnership services in health, education, social care and the voluntary sector and provide education packages for staff within these areas. We have established close links with staff and services from the acute hospital where we help to run a dedicated epilepsy clinic every Wednesday morning. We also work closely with the paediatric neurology team in Sheffield and support their epilepsy clinics each month in Barnsley.

The paediatric epilepsy nursing service in Barnsley provides a wide range of services within the local area. Some of our key aims include:

• Providing high quality evidence-based care for children with epilepsy
• Supporting children and young people with epilepsy to increase their understanding of the condition
• Providing training and support to those who care for children with epilepsy
• Support smooth and timely transitions to adult epilepsy services
• Increasing awareness of epilepsy within the local community
• Promoting service development to best meet the needs of children with epilepsy and their families

Why would someone choose the service?

• The parents of carers of children who use our service often report that they feel “reassured and relieved” when they have met with us
• In our ‘patient and public feedback’ audits patients and parents consistently report that they feel that our service reduces the need for their child to be admitted to hospital, and the need to access GP appointments
• The service also plays a key role in sharing information about the child with a variety of services and parents report that they find that this reduces their anxieties about their child being in school, nursery, respite etc
• As a service, we make sure that we are up-to-date with the latest information and evidence and that the care and support that we provide is considered to be best-practice and in-line with the guidance provided by organisations such as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence

Staff you may meet

Non-clinical support staff

There are many people who work behind the scenes to keep services running and you may meet them in hospital or community settings. They include porters, cleaners, plumbers, electricians, decorators receptionists and secretaries who all work to make sure healthcare settings are kept clean, tidy and safe.

Nurse

Nurses who choose to specialise in the mental health branch of nursing work with GPs, psychiatrists, psychologists, and others, to help care for patients. Increasingly, care is given in the community, with mental health nurses visiting patients and their families at home, in residential centres, in prisons or in specialist clinics or units.

Specialist health worker

We have a range of health workers who all have different specialities. This could be in a certain condition, a therapy or the advice they can give you. Our specialists our highly skilled and trained professionals, ready to offer you help and advice whenever you need it.