Caribbean teachers get help to better support students with epilepsy

More than 50 teachers from across Barbados and the Caribbean have gained lifesaving know-how to support children living with epilepsy, following new training aimed at making classrooms safer and more inclusive.  

The one-day workshop, Bright Futures, Safe Classrooms: Strengthening Epilepsy Knowledge Across Caribbean Education Systems, was held at the Solutions Centre at the University of the West Indies’ Cave Hill Campus. Participants included early childhood, primary, secondary and tertiary educators, as well as 15 teacher trainers from UWI.  

The initiative was designed to give teachers the practical knowledge needed to respond confidently if a seizure occurs in the classroom, said the director of the UWI School of Education, Dr Laurette Bristol. 

Director of the School of Education, Dr Laurette Bristol. (Photo Credit: Lourianne Graham)

“What the workshop is going to be doing today is providing key essential information for educators on what is epilepsy, understanding how it operates, but importantly how to respond when something happens in the classroom,” she said.  

Dr Bristol stressed the importance of dismantling stigma.  

“This is around ensuring that taboos around epilepsy are displaced and creating safe learning environments for our learners and our educators together and once we have information, information, as we say, is power.”  

The ultimate goal is to empower teachers to create more inclusive learning spaces grounded in knowledge rather than fear or misconception, she added.  

Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Education, Dr Henderson Carter, said the training would also strengthen schools’ ability to support students with other neurological and developmental conditions.  

“We are better able to assist our students, our adults as well with epilepsy, those also with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, those with autism as well, we’re able to help them,” he said.  

Dr Bristol noted that one of the key objectives is to bridge the long-standing divide between the education and health sectors.  

“For us to begin a conversation in collaboration with the medical sector and education. Quite often these are two spaces that don’t speak to each other… quite often that when we as educators in the classroom identify a problem and we send it through the referral system and it goes to the doctors, we in the classroom hear nothing again about it… because there’s such a divide between the education sector and the health sector.”  

The workshop forms part of a collaboration between the UWI Cave Hill School of Education, the International League Against Epilepsy and the Epilepsy Society of the Caribbean.  

Dr Bristol described the session as “the beginning of many more experiences” aimed at creating more responsive referral systems, where teachers and medical practitioners co-design solutions for learners.  

Consultant neurologist at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Dr Simeona Jacinto, underscored the urgency of the discussion.  

Consultant Neurologist at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Dr Simeona Jacinto. (Photo Credit: Lourianne Graham)

She said: “This is the discussion that’s very much needed. Your presence here underscores our shared commitment to ensuring that every child, especially those living with epilepsy, can thrive in an environment that is safe, supportive and inclusive.”

Vincentian paediatrician and neurologist at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital in Kingstown, Dr Mishka Duncan, urged schools to integrate epilepsy response into disaster preparedness plans.  

Paediatrician and Neurologist at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital, Dr Mishka Duncan. (Photo Credit: Lourianne Graham)

She recommended that administrators include epilepsy in official disaster manuals, develop hurricane readiness checklists, train multiple staff members in seizure first aid — not just a school nurse — and establish partnerships with clinics and emergency centres.  

Dr Bristol revealed that a Summer Institute will be launched to provide practical training and microcredential certification for educators. Participants will be trained to become in-school trainers, strengthening epilepsy awareness and response systems across the region.  

She added that future phases will also focus on parents and communities.  

“We’re supporting knowledge enhancement for teachers, but at the same time we’re also supporting knowledge enhancement for families and communities.” (LG)