Bridging Between Behavioral Health and Epilepsy Care

The Epilepsy Foundation of America held its annual Skill Building Institute recently in Atlanta for staff from chapters and affiliates. A principal focus of this year’s Institute was collaboration with new partners, specifically mental health service entities. I was privileged to participate in this landmark event.

More than 3 million Americans suffer from epilepsy and seizures, and about half also suffer from mental health conditions, notably depression and anxiety. Hence, it is exceptionally important to build a bridge between behavioral health and epilepsy care.

Further, like mental health consumers, persons with epilepsy also suffer from significant pain and are more likely to be prescribed opioids than those who do not have epilepsy. Yet, opioid use also is a risk factor for precipitating seizures. Unfortunately, national data are not available to determine the prevalence of opioid use or addiction by those with epilepsy.

Let’s focus briefly on several ways the behavioral health field can collaborate with the Epilepsy Foundation and the providers it represents. Almost axiomatic is the assertion that behavioral health providers currently know next to nothing about epilepsy or its treatment. Hence, bridging activities assume great import if we are to work effectively with clients who have epilepsy and behavioral health conditions.

In approximate developmental sequence, a foundational set of bridging activities would include:

• Participation by behavioral health providers in Epilepsy Foundation webinars to learn more about epilepsy, its treatment, and the providers who offer epilepsy care. NACBHDD sponsored the first of these webinars a few weeks ago, and we will offer more webinars in the coming months.
• Development of model local partnerships between behavioral health and epilepsy providers in settings where the Epilepsy Foundation has local chapters or affiliates.
• Initiation and continuance of cross referral and treatment in these pilot settings.
• Extension of the behavioral health peer support model to the epilepsy field, starting with some pilot projects.
• Development of a partnership with the Epilepsy Foundation to implement alternatives to opioid treatment to address the problem of pain.
• Initiation of discussions with the Epilepsy Foundation regarding the development of an integrated care model for epilepsy and behavioral health clients.

Clearly, we have much work to do to bring this important partnership to fruition.

Other important topics covered at the Institute include the extension of epilepsy care systems into rural communities via better use of community health workers, engaging online minority communities through social media, health equity training, and how to use data to tell compelling stories.

While at the Institute, I had the high honor of presenting the CDC Epilepsy Program and the Epilepsy Foundation with national awards recognizing the wonderful, outstanding work each has done to reach out and to partner with the behavioral health field. The CDC award was accepted by Rosemarie Kobau, Epilepsy Program Lead at CDC; the Foundation award, by Phil Gattone, president and CEO of the Foundation. Warm congratulations to each of them!

We look forward to next year’s Institute, which will be held in Denver in mid-March.