# Bridging the Treatment Gap by Expanding Access to Care for People with Epilepsy in Kenya (BEACON)

> **NIH NIH R01** · INDIANA UNIVERSITY INDIANAPOLIS · 2024 · $504,521

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ ABSTRACT
Epilepsy is responsible for about 1% of the global burden of disease, with the highest disease-related
burden found in sub-Saharan Africa. The majority of people with epilepsy (>80%) live in low-resource
settings, as is found in Kenya, where most have limited access to care. Delay in antiseizure medication
(ASM) initiation and ASM non-adherence increase the disease-related burden in terms of low quality of life,
high healthcare costs, and risk for seizure-related injuries and premature death. Our prior study at a tertiary
public hospital in western Kenya showed that only 28% of newly diagnosed people with epilepsy (PWE)
returned for follow-up, indicating a large treatment gap. Cost-effective, context-specific, and culturally
appropriate interventions are critical to addressing access to care and improving epilepsy care retention and
ASM adherence in PWE. The long-term goal of our research program is to address access to care and
improve epilepsy treatment outcomes across the lifespan in western Kenya. We hypothesize that an
evidence-based, task-sharing intervention supported by patient tracking data using an Epilepsy Medical
Record System (EMRS) will provide a scalable and cost-effective approach to improving care retention, ASM
adherence, and epilepsy care outcomes in western Kenya. Aim 1 is to build clinical and research capacity
through the development of EMRS, the clinical training of less specialized staff to implement task-sharing
intervention and the mentorship of a Kenyan investigator. Aim 2 is to evaluate the effectiveness, identify the
mechanisms, and explore the sustainability of the task-sharing intervention supported by EMRS in
improving epilepsy care outcomes. We will conduct a cluster-randomized trial comparing usual care and
intervention groups to quantify the intervention's effectiveness in improving epilepsy care outcomes. Aim
3 is to conduct incremental cost-effectiveness and budget impact analysis of the intervention relative to
usual care. In a long-standing partnership with the Government of Kenya, the Academic Model Providing
Access to Healthcare Partnership (AMPATH) has expanded its clinical scope of work in rural western Kenya to
address issues with chronic disease management. The proposed research will be conducted in
collaboration with AMPATH. The study is innovative in that it will be the first intervention designed to improve
access to care and epilepsy care outcomes in western Kenya. In addition, the clinical and research
capacity-building effort will strengthen the health system capacity for epilepsy care and future independent
research. The proposed research is significant because it is expected to improve the lives of people living with
epilepsy, ensure capacity building, and provide evidence-based and sustainable strategies to inform clinical
practice changes and policy development to improve epilepsy care outcomes and reduce the treatment
gap in resource-limited settings.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10987220
- **Project number:** 1R01NS134056-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** INDIANA UNIVERSITY INDIANAPOLIS
- **Principal Investigator:** Chrispine Owuor Oduor
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $504,521
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-08-10 → 2029-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10987220

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10987220, Bridging the Treatment Gap by Expanding Access to Care for People with Epilepsy in Kenya (BEACON) (1R01NS134056-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-12 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10987220. Licensed CC0.

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