Terri Dorman and colleagues outline results from a survey of how medications to manage seizures in people with learning disabilities and epilepsy are administered

There is a higher prevalence of epilepsy in people with learning disabilities than in the general population. In the authors’ trust’s catchment area of Bedfordshire, concerns have been raised about the training of carers and family members of people with learning disabilities and epilepsy in the use of emergency epilepsy rescue medication. This article describes how a specialist learning disability healthcare service in Bedfordshire completed a survey of the number of people with learning disabilities and epilepsy who were receiving treatment in the area. The results demonstrate that local clinical practice is in line with the relevant National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence standard, and that adequate training for family and paid carers in the use of emergency epilepsy rescue medication is available. However, it also shows that trainers should be assessed regularly and more topics should be covered in their training programmes. Awareness of each person’s epilepsy triggers and careful monitoring of antiepileptic medication ensure effective management of seizure activity, and reduce the need for rescue medication.