Breaking the stigma around epilepsy

“The biggest thing I would want to dispel is the idea that epilepsy is something that one should be embarrassed or ashamed of.”

Fifteen years ago, A/Prof Patrick Carney started his career at Eastern Health as a visiting medical officer in the epilepsy outpatients clinic. He is now the Director of Neurosciences at Eastern Health.

In his current role, Patrick develops services within the department and supports doctors, nurses, and researchers. Other times, he sees both inpatients and outpatients.

“At the heart of it, I’m a clinician. I like seeing and helping patients. It’s incredibly rewarding when you see positive changes through the care that you provide.

…I think we don’t do it for the thank you every time, but I have to say it’s always very nice to receive that and it’s always touching.” He said.

Having epilepsy as his subspecialty, Patrick is passionate about breaking the stigma around epilepsy, promoting respect for all.

“There are lots of great people out there with epilepsy living fantastic and productive lives. And we have lots of things we can do to help those people.”