How New Technologies Could Help in Epilepsy Care, Education and Sensitization of Patients and Carers: The Experience of Telemedicine in the South of Morocco

Abstract

Epilepsy is a public health care problem in Morocco because of its high prevalence (1, 1%). Patients with epilepsy and their families need education and sensitization especially in South Morocco, where health resources and specialized personnel are lacking. All these factors inspired the neurology team of the university hospital in Marrakesh to start using new technologies for epilepsy care, education and sensitization of patients in Marrakech, other neighboring cities and different other parts of South Morocco. We started using new technologies in 2009 at Marrakesh university hospital, which is the sole center in all South Morocco. The aim of this study is to describe the first experience with the use of telemedicine (TM) in epilepsy and to show how it could facilitate, improve care, education, sensitization and reach the maximum of PWE, and thus save time, energy and displacements. Authors showed through this work, that telemedicine offers various possibilities, to connect not only patients, families, physicians and other health professionals, but also associations. (Video conferencing; use of mobile phones; and also use websites and tutorials). This use of new technologies is done for free, for all our patients with the support of university hospital of Marrakech. For a wide category of illiterate patients in Morocco, we use audio and video messages to give a chance of communication and exchange of all kind of informations about the progress of their epilepsy and its follow up. Finally, we have a busy programme for specialists, GPs and all health professionals to provide continuous training.