{"id":37506,"date":"2022-11-28T10:58:35","date_gmt":"2022-11-28T10:58:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/touchneurology.com\/?post_type=insight&p=37506"},"modified":"2022-11-28T10:58:35","modified_gmt":"2022-11-28T10:58:35","slug":"why-change-is-needed-for-children-and-young-people-living-with-migraine-in-the-united-kingdom","status":"publish","type":"insight","link":"https:\/\/touchneurology.com\/insight\/why-change-is-needed-for-children-and-young-people-living-with-migraine-in-the-united-kingdom\/","title":{"rendered":"Why change is needed for children and young people living with migraine in the United Kingdom"},"content":{"rendered":"
The Migraine Trust works to help people affected by migraine. It is the only UK migraine charity providing information and support, campaigning for awareness and change, and funding and promoting research. The Migraine Trust has been leading and bringing the migraine community together to change this since 1965.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Migraine is a neurological condition affecting 1 in 10 children and young people, yet is often overlooked. To ensure children with migraine in the United Kingdom (UK) are better supported and able to live the lives they want, change is urgently needed in both education, healthcare settings and the wider society.<\/span> This article highlights research conducted by The Migraine Trust<\/a><\/span>, in the report \u2018Dismissed for too long: The impact of migraine on children & young people<\/em><\/a><\/span>\u2019, it also discusses health education and government guidance across the UK.<\/p>\n Migraine is a severe and painful long-term brain disorder. People with migraine have migraine attacks, which can be a whole-body experience. Migraine affects 10 million people in the UK and is too often dismissed as \u2019just a headache\u2019, despite the huge impact it can have on all aspects of a person\u2019s life, from school and work to mental health.1<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\n While migraine can have a significant impact on the lives of adults, its impact on children can be even more severe. An estimated one in ten children live with migraine.2<\/sup>\u00a0 This potentially limits their development and ability to take part in education, social activities, and other important parts of growing up. It can also be hard for children to understand and explain their pain, and there are fewer treatment options for them than adults.<\/p>\n Common symptoms of a migraine attack include head pain; changes to eyesight such as seeing flashing lights; sensitivity to light, sound and smells; fatigue; and feeling sick and being sick. Four in 100 children are affected by abdominal migraine, which involves severe stomach pain instead of head pain.3<\/sup> When a child has a migraine attack, they may not be able to function normally.<\/p>\n Research reported by The Migraine Trust, entitled \u2018Dismissed for too long: The impact of migraine on children & young people<\/em><\/a><\/span>\u2019, has shown a need for better understanding of how migraine impacts children and for tailored information, guidance and support for children and young people of different ages who have migraine in the UK.4<\/sup> The report highlighted that children and young people, particularly younger children, often need help in explaining their migraine and need to be included in discussions about their treatment. It also found there needs to be improved communication between health services and schools\/colleges.4,5<\/sup><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Health education is mandatory in state-funded primary and secondary schools in England. Department for Education (DfE) guidance suggests that schools must publish policies for this online and make them available to anyone free of charge. Schools are also advised to share examples of resources to help them engage and consult with parents. There is no mention of headache or migraine in the relevant DfE publication, Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education: Statutory guidance for governing bodies, proprietors, head teachers, principals, senior leadership teams, teachers<\/em>, although there is an emphasis at primary and secondary level on the importance of a healthy lifestyle.11\u00a0<\/sup> The DfE also provides statutory guidance on physical health and mental wellbeing in primary and secondary schools, but does not cover specific conditions such as headache or migraine in detail.12<\/sup><\/p>\n Government guidance under the Children and Families Act 2014 stresses that school pupils with medical conditions should be properly supported so that they have full access to education, including school trips and physical education. Governing bodies must ensure that arrangements are in place in schools to support pupils with medical conditions.13\u00a0<\/sup> If migraine persists for more than 12 months, it can be considered a disability under the Equality Act 2010, creating a duty for schools to make reasonable adjustments. 14,15<\/sup><\/p>\n In Scotland, Scottish Government general guidance on health and wellbeing in schools does address lifestyle factors and emphasises mental health but does not appear to address headache or migraine.15 The 2017 draft guidance for Scottish NHS boards, education authorities and schools on supporting children and young people with healthcare needs in schools briefly mentions headache, but in the context of guidance around parental permission on administering medication.16<\/sup><\/p>\n In Wales, 2017 government guidance on health and wellbeing for learners emphasised physical and mental health, reasonable accommodation, and the need for local authorities to \u201cmake arrangements to promote cooperation between various bodies or persons, with a view to improving, among other things, the well-being of children in relation to their physical and mental health\u201d. The document does not mention migraine or headache specifically but did link to the former charity Migraine Action17<\/sup> as one of several resources.18<\/sup> In Northern Ireland, there is government guidance that helps schools to form their own medicines policies and procedures to ensure that pupils with medication needs receive appropriate care and support, though it does not mention specific conditions.19<\/sup><\/p>\n Migraine is a serious issue for many young people, affecting as many as one in ten children in terms of the quality of healthcare they receive, their experience of school and educational attainment, and their family life. However, there are a variety of steps that should be taken to improve migraine diagnosis at an early age, standards of care, and reasonable accommodation in education settings.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Acknowledgements<\/strong>: Copyediting support has been provided by Touch Medical Media.<\/p>\n Disclosures<\/strong>: Robert Music is the CEO of The Migraine Trust, and has nothing to disclose in relation to this article.<\/p>\n Access<\/strong>: This article is freely accessible at touchNEUROLOGY.com \u00a9 Touch Medical Media 2022<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Rob Music, CEO, The Migraine Trust, United Kingdom Rob Music joined The Migraine Trust as Chief Executive in February 2021. He has over 30 years\u2019 experience working for healthcare charities, starting out as a fundraiser, and before his current position he held similar roles at Jo\u2019s Cervical Cancer Trust and Endometriosis UK. Despite being so […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":37508,"template":"","class_list":["post-37506","insight","type-insight","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","vocabulary_1-headache-disorders"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/touchneurology.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/insight\/37506"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/touchneurology.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/insight"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/touchneurology.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/insight"}],"version-history":[{"count":25,"href":"https:\/\/touchneurology.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/insight\/37506\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":85062,"href":"https:\/\/touchneurology.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/insight\/37506\/revisions\/85062"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/touchneurology.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37508"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/touchneurology.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37506"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Rob Music joined The Migraine Trust as Chief Executive in February 2021. He has over 30 years\u2019 experience working for healthcare charities, starting out as a fundraiser, and before his current position he held similar roles at Jo\u2019s Cervical Cancer Trust and Endometriosis UK. Despite being so common migraine has been poorly invested in and the patient pathway can be a long and challenging one. Rob is determined to see improvements in migraine care, treatments and access for the 10m living with migraine, and for the charity to be a key voice in calling for positive change.<\/em><\/p>\n
Summary<\/h2>\n
Introduction<\/h2>\n
Dismissed for too long. The impact of migraine on children & young people – Summary of the Report<\/h2>\n
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Health education<\/h2>\n
Government Guidance<\/h2>\n
Conclusions<\/h2>\n
References:<\/h2>\n
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Article information:<\/strong><\/h6>\n