Expanding epilepsy care access in Kenya with a shared medical record and task-sharing approach
Official title: Bridging the Treatment Gap by Expanding Access to Care for People with Epilepsy in Kenya (BEACON)
Funded at University of Virginia · NIH-11540516 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A project in Kenya aims to improve how people with epilepsy start and stay on antiseizure medicines by using a local electronic record system and training staff to share tasks that support care.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Virginia NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Charlottesville, United States) |
| Project start | August 10, 2024 |
| Project end | July 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $270,769 |
| NIH project number | 3R01NS134056-03S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11540516 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People with epilepsy in western Kenya, including adolescents and adults, who are or will be receiving care at participating clinics.
✕Less likely to help
Individuals who do not have access to care or are unable to engage with a clinic-based treatment plan may not benefit.
What this research studies
This project in western Kenya will implement an Epilepsy Medical Record System and train healthcare staff to share tasks so people with epilepsy can get timely treatment and adhere to their medications. It builds capacity at the clinic level and seeks scalable, cost-effective ways to keep patients engaged in follow-up care. By tracking patient visits and treatment progress, the team hopes to reduce delays in starting medication and improve long-term outcomes for people with epilepsy across ages.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, patients could experience better seizure control and quality of life through earlier treatment and improved medication adherence.
How similar studies have gone: Prior work suggests that task-sharing and patient-tracking systems can improve follow-up and treatment retention in similar settings, though results vary by context.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Virginia
Charlottesville, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Von Gaudecker, Jane — University of Virginia
- Study coordinator: Von Gaudecker, Jane
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Scaling Up Task-Shifted Epilepsy Care for Children in Africa
A study to help children with epilepsy in Africa get diagnosed and receive seizure care through trained community health workers.
-
Closed-loop control of interneuron timing to influence seizures and memory in epilepsy
A study tests a brain-quieting system that uses light to precisely time certain brain cells in epilepsy-prone mice to see if this can lessen seizures and improve memory.
-
Epilepsy Data Ecosystem: A Big-Data Sharing Platform for Better Care
A national effort to collect and share large, multi‑modal brain data from people with medication‑resistant epilepsy to speed discoveries and improve treatment options.
-
Exploring epilepsy genes in zebrafish to understand human brain seizures
A study in zebrafish will model human epilepsy genes to help explain how certain brain mutations contribute to seizures.
-
New MRI tools to better plan pediatric epilepsy surgery
A new MRI-based approach helps doctors decide the best time to surgically remove brain tissue in children with difficult-to-control seizures.
-
Sahel Epilepsy Study: finding patterns in epilepsy in rural Africa and its links to genes
A plan to study epilepsy in rural Nigeria to discover how common it is, what factors affect risk, and how genetics may influence it, with results that could improve care for people with epilepsy.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.