Managing Epilepsy Well (MEW) Network
About the MEW Network
The Managing Epilepsy Well Network (MEW) was established in 2007 to advance the science on epilepsy self-management by conducting high-quality research across a network of universities, collaborating with community stakeholders to implement activities, and broadly disseminating research findings. The MEW Network addresses the Living Well with Epilepsy (2003) [PDF-1.6MB] priority recommendations, and the Institute of Medicine Epilepsy Across the Spectrum 2012 recommendations related to accelerating, promoting, and disseminating epilepsy self-management research. The MEW Network is one of CDC’s Prevention Research Centers Program thematic networks.
- To learn more, read The Managing Epilepsy Well Network and Selected Self-Management Programs: Putting Collective Wisdom to Work for People with Epilepsy [PDF – 5 MB] report, or visit the MEW Network website.
- To learn about the partners, programs, and impact of CDC’s Managing Epilepsy Well Network, read the Power of Collaboration. [PDF – 2 MB]
The MEW Network currently includes one coordinating center (Emory University) and four collaborating center members.
Coordinating Center
Emory University
Emory University serves as the Coordinating Center for the MEW Network in collaboration with Dartmouth College. In this role, Emory University coordinates communication and collaboration across the MEW Network. They also work with MEW Network partners and epilepsy stakeholders to study factors that lead to successful program implementation and dissemination.
In collaboration with Dartmouth College, the team will replicate HOBSCOTCH (HOme-Based Self-management and COgnitive Training CHanges lives), a self-management program for adults with epilepsy and memory problems. This project will:
- Put into action and test the program within epilepsy and community-based organizations by recruiting diverse program participants from Georgia.
- Use the RE-AIM framework (Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance) to identify factors that affect MEW Network program adoption.
- Partner with national and local organizations to encourage the adoption and sustainability of HOBSCOTCH and other MEW Network programs.
Learn more about HOBSCOTCH.
Collaborating Centers
New York University
Evaluation of Project UPLIFT for Diverse Adults with Epilepsy
New York University will replicate the UPLIFT (Using Practice and Learning to Increase Favorable Thoughts) depression treatment program within a larger, more racially and ethnically diverse group of adults with epilepsy to continue to study whether UPLIFT works in different groups and to identify which parts of the program have the most effect.
To accomplish this, New York University will:
- Compare the effects of the UPLIFT program to other telephone-based support groups among English- and Spanish-speaking adults with epilepsy to see if UPLIFT’s cognitive behavioral therapy and mindfulness components are key to UPLIFT’s effectiveness.
- Identify and test different approaches that appeal to patients and providers to promote program adoption.
Learn more about UPLIFT.
University of Arizona
Improving Participant Retention and Outcomes Using MINDSET and other MEW Programs
The University of Arizona is partnering with the University of Texas and the Epilepsy Foundation Central & South Texas (EFCST) to replicate MINDSET (Management Information Decision Support Epilepsy Tool) to improve self-management behaviors, reduce seizure frequency, and increase quality of life in a diverse population of people with epilepsy. The team will also enhance MINDSET to include ways to screen and refer clinic patients with epilepsy into three other locally available MEW Network programs that EFCST supports. This enhanced version (“MINDSETPlus”) will be compared to MINDSET alone to see whether MINDSETPlus results in a more efficient patient screening and referral process for program participation and improved patient outcomes.
This project will:
- Refine the current version of MINDSET based on evaluation results.
- Develop and test a new version, MINDSETPlus, that will allow health care providers to tailor recommendations to other MEW self-management programs that may help their patients, such as HOBSCOTCH, UPLIFT, and PACES.
- Share findings on the impact MINDSET has on behavioral and clinical outcomes, MEW program retention, and health care usage.
Learn more about MINDSET.
University of Iowa
SMART: Targeting Rural and Underserved Adults with Epilepsy
The University of Iowa, in partnership with Case Western University, will test the SMART (Self-Management for People with Epilepsy and a History of Negative Health Events) program among adults with epilepsy in rural Iowa communities.
This project will:
- Conduct focus groups to understand how SMART is perceived among adults with epilepsy in rural communities.
- Improve quality of life and reduce depression and negative health events (e.g., breakthrough seizures, hospitalization) among adults with epilepsy who participate.
- Identify and assist adults who have difficulty engaging and remaining in self- management programs.
Learn more about SMART.
University of Washington
PACES in Epilepsy: Translation, Dissemination, and Sustainability
The University of Washington is collaborating with the University of Texas Southwestern and the University of California Los Angeles to translate the PACES (Program of Active Consumer Engagement in Self-management in epilepsy) program into Spanish for adults with epilepsy and adapt it for adolescents with epilepsy. The project will:
- Test the program among Spanish-speaking adults with epilepsy in Texas.
- Adapt the PACES program for adolescent use with English and bilingual (Spanish/English) participants in California.
- Examine factors that influence participant engagement and program adoption of PACES among both adults and adolescents.
Learn more about PACES.
For publications resulting from MEW Network research, visit the MEW Network Website.
Below are publications that provide an overview of the MEW Network:
Kobau R, Price P, Hawkins NA. News From the CDC: Translating Epilepsy Self-management Research to Practice. Transl Behav Med. 2012;2(2):124-125.
Kobau R, Price P, Giles HW, Pennell P, Hargis E. Forward/Editorial: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Managing Epilepsy Well Network. Epilepsy Behav. 2010;19(3):216-217.
DiIorio C, Bamps Y, Edwards AL, et al. The Prevention Research Centers’ Managing Epilepsy Well Network. Epilepsy & Behav. 2010;19(3):218-224.
Sajatovic M, Jobst BC, Shegog R, et al. The Managing Epilepsy Well Network: Advancing epilepsy self-management. Am J Prev Med. 2017;52(3S3):S241–S245.