Epilepsy specialist nurses (ESNs)

Advice and support for epilepsy specialist nurses, including professional resources and access to our printed advice and information material.

A nurse dressed in her scrubs uniform standing outside a patient's house

Support for ESNs

  • Order materials for your clinic or surgery

    We have a wide range of books, booklets and factsheets about epilepsy. Download our nurse information catalogue for available titles.

    Make an order

  • Competencies and professional portfolio

    Key resources for ESNs, including downloadable content from the epilepsy specialist nurse competency frameworks and the Professional portfolio.

    Access the resources

  • The Step Together toolkit

    Epilepsy and Learning Disability Services – Step Together

    New guidance has been developed by a multi-disciplinary group of professionals with input from people with epilepsy and learning disabilities, and carers. It describes the elements of a good quality integrated service for people with a learning disability and epilepsy. Our summary guide encourages commissioners and providers to audit what is available for their population and assess the extent to which needs are currently met. It offers examples of ways to increase collaboration, improve services and consistency in epilepsy provision, and reduce unwarranted variation.

    Read our summary

    It can be used to enable commissioners to ask questions and encourage provider cooperation, quality improvement and workforce development. Where gaps in provision or quality are identified, it shows how new or enhanced services could be commissioned. We encourage pragmatic provider development solutions that can be facilitated as part ICS work streams, clinical audit programmes or quality improvement objectives. We suggests that local care pathways are documented, and protocols/practices agreed to deliver consistent and good care.

    See the full guide

    It advocates reviewing the expertise and capacity of the workforce using competency frameworks to support skills and knowledge development and role extension.

    Easy read version

    Step Together Benchmarking Tool

    Epilepsy Action and the digital consultancy Accession Healthcare Consulting Ltd have cooperated to produce this self-assessment questionnaire. It forms part of a digital benchmarking tool that enables services to understand the qualities, standards and variation of epilepsy and learning disability services across an area, for example an integrated care system, an NHS Trust, or a devolved nation.

    This tool is based on the Step Together Guidance and the Purple Light Toolkit work led by Professor Rohit Shankar of the University of Plymouth. This questionnaire aims to assess the whole service; users are not expected to know the answers to all questions.

    Download the Step together toolkit Download the toolkit guidance

Brand new membership for nurses

We’ve partnered with ESNA to provide a joint membership to nurses.

Find out more

Induction training for ESNs

Epilepsy Action hold regular induction trainings for newly appointed epilepsy specialist nurses.

The induction is a fantastic learning day and opportunity to meet other newly appointed ESNs.

Check for upcoming dates

Useful downloads for your patients

Your epilepsy

This brochure gives an overview of epilepsy, living with epilepsy and the support you can get from Epilepsy Action.

Download Order a physical copy of this resource

Children’s Epilepsy Surgery Service (CESS) in England

Download Order a physical copy of this resource

Buccal Midazolam

Download

Rectal Diazepam

Download

Seizure diary

Download