Online Program
Why Can’t This Child Get to Class? Learn how ME/CFS keeps youth from attending school
Overview:“Why Can’t This Child Get to Class?”
This program is provided by Northeastern University School Health Academy, which operates within Northeastern University School of Nursing, an ANCC-Accredited Provider, in collaboration with joint provider, Massachusetts ME/CFS & FM Association.
ME/CFS is a highly debilitating disease with neurological, immunological and energy production impairments that afflicts 1 to 2.5 million people in the US — adults and children. The Institute of Medicine (now the Academy of Medicine) 2015 report states that up to 90% of patients are either not diagnosed or misdiagnosed.
This program also features taped videoconference interviews with parent Amy Mooney about her daughter Lizzie’s journey with ME/CFS, and parent Kathy Detwiler about her son’s struggle with ME/CFS.
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Cost: Free
Contact Hours 0.0
Objectives:
As a result of this online program, school nurses will be able to:
- State the estimated prevalence of ME/CFS in youth
- Describe the illness and treatment options
- Describe the patient and family experience: impact of ME/CFS on education and quality of life for youth; families’ experiences of ME/CFS in schools and connections with providers.
- Describe the role of the School Nurse with students suspected to have ME/CFS and resources/referral options
Presenter:
Peter C. Rowe, MD
Dr. Rowe received his BA from the University of Toronto, and attended medical school at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. He completed his residency training in pediatrics, fellowship training in general pediatric academic development, and Chief Residency at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. His clinical interests and research for the last 25 years have focused on medical conditions characterized by chronic fatigue. His work first described an association between treatable circulatory disorders and what we now call Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS). He and his colleagues first noted that joint hypermobility was a risk factors for both orthostatic intolerance and ME/CFS, that milk protein intolerance is a contributor to symptoms in adolescents and young adults with ME/CFS, and that abnormal range of motion in soft tissues and nerves is a biomechanical contributor to ME/CFS symptoms. His research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, the US Department of Defense, the Solve ME/CFS Initiative, and several smaller foundations, as well as by private philanthropy. He has directed the Chronic Fatigue Clinic at the Children’s Center since 1996, where he is the inaugural recipient of the Sunshine Natural Wellbeing Foundation Chair in Chronic Fatigue and Related Disorders.
Lisa Hall, RN
Lisa Hall, RN, is a healthcare professional who has worked with ME/CFS patients for 17 years. During that time, she has been the head nurse at Northampton Integrative Medicine, one of Massachusetts’s largest clinics serving patients with chronic illness, such as ME. Lisa facilitates and coordinates care for patients. She speaks from the perspective of an ME/CFS health care provider.
Amy Mooney, MS, OTR/L
Amy Mooney, MS, OTR/L, is an occupational therapist who knows first-hand about the role of caregiving and about Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, or “ME,” as the mother of a child with this condition.Amy has an undergraduate degree from Loyola University in Chicago and a Master’s degree in OT from Rush University Chicago. She is a returned Peace Corp volunteer and has worked as an OT in a variety of pediatric settings, including schools, early intervention/home health, outpatient, and private practice. Amy is the mother of 3 school-aged children including a 14 year-old daughter who has ME. Amy is interested in increasing awareness about ME, especially in the medical community, and hopes to inform fellow OT practitioners about how they can support the care and provide treatment for people with this condition.
Katherine (Kathy) Detwiler
Kathy lives in Scituate, MA and has two children. She is a full time care taker for her son, Chad (age 31) who became ill with ME/CFS at the age of 13. She also is the owner of Buttonwood Books and Toys, an independent bookstore in Cohasset, MA.
The planners of this educational activity have no conflict of interest to declare.
The speakers have no conflict of interest to declare unless otherwise indicated prior to their presentations.
Continuing Education Information:
Northeastern University School of Nursing is accredited as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurse Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.
Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Provider Number 2016U018
Participants successfully completing this program will receive a statement of credit for contact hours. Statements of Credit may be printed on-line after successful completion of the learning assessment.