Details
Course Objectives
By the end of the course the participant will be able to:
- Briefly explain what happens in the brain when a person has a seizure.
- Identify the signs and symptoms of a seizure.
- Name the two major types of seizures and describe the characteristics of each.
- Discuss the advantages of understanding seizure types and epileptic syndromes.
- Explain the difference between partial seizures and generalized seizures.
- Distinguish between grand mal and petit mal seizures.
- Describe the causes of seizures.
- Explain the relationship between sleep and epilepsy.
- Describe febrile seizures and factors that raise the probability of occurrence.
- Define epilepsy and discuss the characteristics of the disease.
- List two common imaging studies used for diagnosing seizure activity.
- Discuss the treatment of epilepsy.
- Describe proper emergency precautions to be used during a seizure.
- Name two drugs commonly used to treat epilepsy.
- Discuss the risk factors associated with pregnancy in women with epilepsy.
- Describe the psychosocial aspects of seizure disorders.
- Explain the importance of proper patient education about seizure disorders.
Course Outline
Hour One
- Pretest
- A. Seizures
- 1. Definition
- B. Epilepsy
- 1. Definition
- 2. Classification
- a. Partial onset
- b. Generalized onset
- 3. Epileptic syndromes
- 4. Uses of classifications
- C. Partial Seizures
- D. Generalized seizures
- 1. Generalized tonic clonic (grand mal)
- 2. Myoclonic
- 3. Absence (petit mal)
- 4. Atonic
- E. Causes of seizures
- 1. Genetic factors
- 2. Metabolic disturbances
- 3. Head injury or tumors
- 4. Toxic causes
- 5. Stroke & cebrovascular disorders
- 6. Other
- F. Sleep & epilepsy
- G. Febrile seizures
Hour Two
- A. Epilepsy: Details of the disease
- 1. Definition
- 2. History
- 3. Incidence
- 4. Brain abnormalities
- 5. Areas of brain prone to seizures
- 6. What provokes a seizure
- 7. How triggers affect seizures
- B. Epilepsy: Moods, Behavior, Memory
- 1. Moods and behavior
- 2. Effects of epilepsy treatment
- 3. Thinking and memory
- 4. Top 10 memory complaints
- 5. Help for memory issues
- 6. Untreated epilepsy and the effects
- C. Neurological Related Information
- 1. Neurological insult
- 2. Neurological examination
- 3. EEG & what it shows
- 4. Epileptiform waves
- 5. Acute symptomatic seizures
- 6. EEG & neuroimaging & epilepsy
- 7. MRI scans & SPECT scans
Hour Three
- A. Diagnosis and treatment
- 1. Treatment goals
- 2. Patient survey of goals & results
- 3. Initiation of treatment
- 4. Antiepileptic drugs
- 5. Surgery
- 6. Ketogenic diet
- B. Seizures: Safety and precautions
- 1. Driving and seizure disorders
- 2. Safety precautions during a seizure
- 3. After the seizure
- 4. Seizures on an airplane & in water
- 5. Subjective assessment
- 6. Objective data
- 7. Seizure alert dogs
- C. Drugs & Other Treatment
- 1. Common medications
- 2. First generation anticonvulsants
- 3. Second generation anticonvulsants
- 4. Tolerance & antiepileptic drugs
- 5. Antibiotics & seizure medications
- 6. Contraceptives & antiepileptic drugs
- 7. Alternative medical systems
- 8. Alternative therapies
- 9. Other drug-related considerations
- D. Medications, Epilepsy, and Pregnancy
- 1. Pregnancy
- 2. Antiepileptic drug medications while pregnant
- 3. Risk factors for mother & child
- E. Perceptions and education
- F. Perceptions of seizures
- G. Seizures and Epilepsy Education (S.E.E. Program)
- 1. Psychological aspects of seizure
- 2. Stress & seizures
- 3. Changes in sexual desire
- 4. Concerns of older adults
- 5. Myths & misconceptions
- 6. Epilepsy news
Online Final Exam
Instructor
Sandra Flores, RN
Sandra Flores, RN is a respected educator, consultant, and published author for the Assisted Living industry. Sandi is past president of the American Assisted Living Nurses Association representing the organization in Washington, DC as a board member of the Center for Excellence in Assisted Living. She serves as a consultant on resident care with over 3000 beds under clinical management. She also provides expert witness for legal review to industry providers. As an educator, Sandi has instructed more than twenty thousand residential care administrators and caregivers throughout the western United States. Sandi also co-authors a monthly column in the magazine Geriatric Nursing.