HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002 November as National Epilepsy Awareness Month
PROCLAMA TION
WHEREAS, Epilepsy, also known as Seizure Disorder, has afflicted mankind since the dawn of our species
and has been recognized since the earliest medical writings, and as long as 400 B.C. Hippocrates, the Father of
Medicine, repudiated ancient beliefs that Epilepsy was a visitation from the Gods and sacred or that it was a curse
from the Gods that people afflicted with this disorder held prophetic powers. Hippocrates believed that Epilepsy
was a brain disorder, and
WHEREAS, a seizure is a sudden, brief attack of altered consciousness, motor activity or sensory
phenomena. It is a sign that certain brain cells (neurons) are discharging an excessive amount of electrical
impulses.
WHEREAS, Epilepsy can be caused by injury to the brain, lack of oxygen at birth, brain tumor, infection
and brain hemorrhage. In sixty percent of the cases, the cause is unknown, and Epilepsy can affect anyone, at
any age and at any time, and more than two million Americans are afflicted with some type of Epilepsy. Of this
number, 150,000 are Florida residents; and with the administration of anticonvulsant drugs, two thirds (66.660/0)
of those afflicted with Epilepsy are drug controlled, and
WHEREAS, lack of education about this disorder has contributed to age old myths, superstitions and
prejudices, and the stigma associated with this disorder is sometimes worse than the disorder itself, and
WHEREAS, people who have Epilepsy make reliable and conscientious workers in job performance,
productivity, safety, cooperation and attendance, and studies carried out in the UN ITED STATES over the past
thirty years have indicated that of all disabilities, Epilepsy poses the greatest barrier to employment with
unemployment rates estimated to fall between twenty and twenty-five percent;
WHEREAS, Epilepsy should not be a barrier to success. In addition to the normal requirements for
success, a person who has Epilepsy needs a supportive environment and employers who are willing to give them
an opportunity to become productive citizens.
THEREFORE, by virtue of the authority vested in me as Mayor of Winter Springs, we sincerely recognize:
NATIONAL EPILEPSY AWARENESS MONTH
Robert S. Miller
Commissioner
Michael S. Blake
Commissioner
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CITY CLERK "",*""~,,.,~
Paul P. Partyka
Mayor
Edward Martinez, Jr.
Commissioner
Cindy Gennell
Commissioner
David W. McLeod
Commissioner