Epilepsy Action, the UK’s largest member-led epilepsy organisation, has archived a time capsule at the Royal Society of Medicine as part of its Diamond Jubilee activities.
The time capsule has been created for future Epilepsy Action staff to open in 2050, the charity’s 100th anniversary. It provides a snapshot of what life is like for the charity and its members in 2010. It reflects such things as stigma, public attitudes, the state of medical epilepsy knowledge, and aspirations for the future.
There are around 60 items in the time capsule. Content includes both digital and hard copies. Staff have written a short paragraph on their duties and created avatars to represent themselves visually.
In 1950, the Royal Society of Medicine hosted the first ever meeting of the British Epilepsy Association. At this meeting, all interested parties were brought together to start a laymen’s organisation to further the interests of people with epilepsy. A council was appointed and a name was adopted. This was the formation of the organisation we know today as Epilepsy Action.
Philip Lee, chief executive of Epilepsy Action, said: “It’s great for us to be going back to where it all began to communicate with future staff. We are hoping that Epilepsy Action staff in 2050 find the information in the time capsule interesting, and are very grateful to the Royal Society of Medicine for holding it for us.”
Epilepsy is one of the most common serious neurological conditions in the UK. Epilepsy Action directly helps more than 688,000 people each year through a range of services.
These include its advice and information service, specialist nurse scheme and Epilepsy Helpline freephone 0808 800 5050. For more information, visit www.epilepsy.org.uk