Kenya Association for Welfare of People with Epilepsy (KAWE) has called on Kenyans to stop stigmatization against people living with epilepsy noting that it is a treatable medical condition and not caused by curses or witchcraft.
Epilepsy is a neurological condition that causes recurring seizures, and it can be as a result of various factors including brain damage, developmental abnormalities or gene inheritance.
Around 50 million people worldwide are living with epilepsy while in Kenya, the prevalence is one in every 18 people.
Speaking during a sensitization forum with primary healthcare providers in Garissa, Nicholus Otieno, a clinical officer with KAWE said that the need to train the health workers is to ensure that epileptic patients receive treatment at dispensaries closest to them.
“We are here to create awareness and make people understand that epilepsy is a treatable medical condition. We are also training the primary healthcare providers to ensure that when epilepsy patients come to the facilities, they get the right treatment and medical support,” Otieno said.
“We are targeting the community health promoters, chiefs and their assistants, community leaders and other decision makers in the community so that we make sure that there is proper information about epilepsy and demystify the myths and misconceptions around this condition,” he added.
Otieno further said that it was important to empower the communities to understand what to do when a person close to them starts having a seizure and how the first aid for the persons with epilepsy is conducted.
“We also want to make sure that these persons are allowed to be part of the community activities so that they become productive. We want to see that the children with epilepsy are retained in schools and get employment like any other person,” he said.
Brian Tabani, another clinical officer with the organization attributed some epilepsy cases to poor antenatal care where pregnant mothers are not well taken care of or where mothers fail to go to deliver at hospitals leading to poor growth for the babies.
Tabini also noted that road accidents that lead to brain injuries can lead to epilepsy but was quick to add that there are other unclear causes of the condition, which need to be researched.
He said that building capacity of the communities and medical workers on epilepsy will help the affected persons against getting into any danger during the seizures thus saving their lives.
“Once a seizure happens, there is no need for you to run away because it is not something transmissible by touching that patient. Instead, remove any danger around this person, and then make sure that the person is able to breathe well by removing any tight clothing and putting them in a comfortable position so that there are no air blockages,” Tabini said.
Garissa County coordinator for non-communicable diseases Nukta Mohamed on her part called on persons living with epilepsy and parents of children with the condition to come out and seek medical services to manage the disease well.
Nukta said that with proper medical care, there are high chances of recovery while for other cases, the management of the condition becomes easier. “Epilepsy is one of the neglected conditions though it’s a non-communicable disease.
For a long time, in our communities in Africa and in Kenya, this disease has been shrouded with stigma in the community and associated with curses and superstitions,” Nukta regretted.
“Epilepsy can be treated and almost 75 percent of the conditions that are predisposing to epilepsy are something that is preventable. If a patient is seen by a medical practitioner and is treated well with regular appointments, this condition can be controlled and some patients may even recover,” she added.
Nukta further revealed that in 2023, Garissa County reported over 2,018 cases of epilepsy in children, 1,340 cases in 2024 and 490 cases between January and June this year.
By Erick Kyalo
