Item E4
Add /),.,
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY
Meeting Date:
11/20/02
Division: Mayor McCoy
Bulk Item: Yes_No X
Department: BOCC- 3
AGENDA ITEM WORDING:
Proclamation proclaiming November 2002 as National Epilepsy Awareness Month in Monroe County,
Florida.
ITEM BACKGROUND:
PREVIOUS RELEVANT BOCC ACTION:
CONTRACT/AGREEMENT CHANGES:
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
TOTAL COST:
BUDGETED: Yes_No_
COST TO COUNTY:
REVENUE PRODUCING: Yes
No_AMOUNTPERMO TH_YEAR
APPROVED BY: County Atty _ OMB/Purchasin~Ri M agement_
DIVISION DIRECTOR APPROVAL:
DOCUMENTATION: Included: X
To Follow:_
DISPOSITION:
AGENDA ITEM #
ELI
JIlapor' g
iBroclamation
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
WHEREAS, 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
ith 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; and
WHEREAS, Epilepsy can affect anyone, at any age and at any time; and
WHEREAS, more than two minion Americans are afflicted With some type of Epilepsy. Of this number
150,000 are Florida residents; and
WHEREAS, with the administration of anticonvulsant drugs, two thirds (66.66%) 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
WHEREAS, 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
WHEREAS, studies carried out in the United States over the past thirty years have i1idicated that of all
disabilities, Epilepsy poses the greatest barrier to employment with unemployment rates estimated to fall
een twenty and twenty-five percent; and
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.
NOW, THEREFORE, by the power vested in me as Mayor of Monroe County, Florida,
I do hereby proclaim the month of November 2002 as
~
and hereby direct the Clerk to forward a copy of this Proclamation
6670 Royal Palm Boulevard. Building K, Apt. 302, Margate. Fl
DATED this 20th day of November, 2002 in Key
'NA TIONAL EPILEPSY
A WARENESS ~ K
County, Florida.
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