Knowledge and Attitudes of Teachers and School Professionals Toward Epilepsy: Results of an Educational Program in Greece

Background: The prejudices that accompany epilepsy in the school environment have negative consequences in the lives of children with epilepsy, such as stigmatization and marginalization. Many studies worldwide highlight that a significant percentage of teachers do not have the necessary knowledge about epilepsy and do not know what to do during an epileptic seizure. For this reason, the existence of educational programs for epilepsy among schoolteachers is suggested by these studies as a way forward. This urgent need to educate teachers about epilepsy has led several studies to focus on the planning and implementation of such health education programs. Objectives: This study examined the impact of a specific educational program on epilepsy, conducted in Western Greece and aimed at teachers and school professionals in primary education. Five hundred and forty-five teachers and school professionals in primary education in Western Greece were administered to assess their knowledge and attitudes towards epilepsy. The results showed gaps in knowledge and negative attitudes. This led to the creation of a targeted educational program to examine its impact on changing teachers' knowledge and attitudes towards epilepsy. Materials and methods: The study follows a quasi-experimental pre-post intervention design without a control group. The present study involved 471 primary school teachers, out of the 545 initially approached, who attended a targeted educational and interactive program on seizure education and management of epileptic seizures. Proposed up-to-date guidelines for epilepsy by the World Health Organization's action plan were considered. The material used for the presentation was evaluated by a Greek neurologist specializing in a university hospital and a general practitioner to present good first-aid practices for managing an epileptic seizure. The final training program was structured into two three-hour sessions, held over two consecutive days. After the training, the teachers were asked to complete the same questionnaire they had completed in the previous study. The data were analyzed with IBM SPSS Statistics software, version 28.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). Limitations included potential selection bias and the absence of long-term follow-up. Results: The findings indicate significant differences in respondents' answers before and after the intervention. More specifically, regarding knowledge about epilepsy, it seems that many participants after the intervention answered correctly questions related to the causes of epilepsy, the age at which it occurs, and the number of people it affects, as well as the existence of neurosurgery as a treatment option. Meanwhile, "I don't know" responses decreased significantly, shifting mainly towards the correct answers. In addition, knowledge about seizure management improved, as more participants answered correctly, incorrect responses decreased, and “I don’t know” responses in this area were almost eliminated. Furthermore, after the intervention, it seems that participants feel more confident in managing an epileptic seizure in the school environment. Conclusions: The interactive training program had a positive impact on overall knowledge and attitudes; however, coordinated efforts by the entire educational community and health organizations are recommended to implement specialized training and guidance programs for teachers.