Quality of Life Dilemmas in Pediatric Patients with Epilepsy Residing in Long-Term Care Facilities

Abstract Children with chronic care or complex medical needs, such as epilepsy, depend on advocates to ensure their safety and well-being, a role typically filled by parents or extended family. Close participation to provide vital history and details is quintessential to help guide appropriate management decisions to ensure optimal neurodevelopmental outcome. However, when these vulnerable children are placed in the foster care system, their need for an advocate becomes even more paramount. Unfortunately, this can be lacking and can lead to a breakdown in their medical care. Their complex medical conditions often can be intimidating to most potential foster families and may result in placement in long-term care facilities. This, in turn, presents additional obstacles that can hinder optimal care such as lack of consistent, dedicated caretakers. This void not only impacts their outcome and medical care but also leads to excessive use of limited healthcare resources as well as unwanted adverse reactions that can be prevented if a reliable source of history is available. As a result, there is a need for dedicated resources to help provide devoted advocates for these vulnerable children.