Nurses are increasingly taking on new responsibilities – this helps patients and their families, and reduces the load on doctors. The Swiss League Against Epilepsy is launching a pilot project to train and introduce specialist epilepsy nurses throughout Switzerland, and is looking for project partners.

March 2023 – Switzerland already has specialist nurses for Parkinson’s Disease, breast cancer and palliative care, and in many other countries specialist epilepsy nurses are well established. Now the Swiss League Against Epilepsy wants to set up specialist training in Switzerland, and to introduce the first Swiss “epilepsy nurses” in collaboration with selected hospitals. The Epilepsy League is able to partially cover the initial additional costs thanks to endowments and donations from corporate partners. In the medium and long term, the idea is for costs to be reimbursed by health insurers.

Call for applications «Epilepsy Nurses»

Medical institutions in Switzerland which treat adults and/or children with epilepsy, in both inpatient and outpatient settings.

The participating institutions nominate a nurse or technologist in clinical neurophysiology who is suitable for the new role: He/she ideally has at least 2 years’ experience with epilepsy patients and is interested in learning new skills, improving his/her knowledge and taking on new responsibilities. He or she will attend specialist training sessions, possibly in Germany or France (up to 140 hours in total). The nurse will then be released from other tasks to manage and support epilepsy patients and their families for about 15% of full-time working hours, equating to around 6 hours per week. This arrangement will initially be for one year (the duration may be extended depending on the number of participating project partners). The Epilepsy League will cover the training costs and contribute up to CHF 12,000 towards the salary of the epilepsy nurse.

  • Co-financing of new tasks, project contribution of up to CHF 12,000 per nurse
  • The project covers the costs of training courses to acquire specialist knowledge (nurses can study for the “Epilepsie Fachassistenz/Fachberatung” qualification in Bethel if they wish)
  • Detailed project documentation on procedures and potential tasks
  • Scientific evaluation of the project via an externally conducted master’s thesis is planned
  • Opportunity to network with other participating nurses

  • Identify a suitable nurse internally (see requirements above)
  • Let us know how many hours per week will be reserved for the new role, and how you will ensure they are used in a worthwhile manner
  • Enclose a letter confirming your interest, along with the CV of the selected candidate (in German, French or English)
  • Ensure that the nurse can attend the specialist training courses during regular paid working hours. Some courses may take place before the official project start
  • Ensure that the person is released from other duties for the working hours allocated to the project, at least for the duration of the project
  • Ensure an agreement is in place for the reimbursement of course costs should the selected person hand in their notice during the project period

Trainings and official project start: Second half of 2023

Contact

Julia Franke
Julia FrankeDirector
Tel. +41 43 477 07 06

Contact

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Crashkurs Epilepsie für Pflegende und Betreuende (German)
Epilepsie-Fachassistenz in Bethel