The issue of SUDEP was first formally addressed, in North America, by the convening of a SUDEP task force meeting in 2007.  Further information regarding that meeting, and work since, can be found here

The same year, to address the need for publicly available information about SUDEP and support resources for families bereaved by SUDEP, SUDEP Aware was formed.  With a primary goal to help raise awareness within the healthcare and lay communities, our activities to date have included:


Raising awareness in 2013:

June 10 
Presentation: at 64th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association of Pathologists/27th World Congress of the World Association of Societies of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine.
Elizabeth Donner
March 26Interview for TV broadcast: Global News, Toronto, Canada.
Elizabeth Donner
 & Tamzin Jeffs
March 3Booth manning/Conference participation: 3rd Annual Epilepsy Family Education Day hosted by Sick Kids Hospital, Toronto, Canada.
Tamzin Jeffs
February 26  Participation: at Epilepsy Foundation SUDEP Institute Kick-Off Meeting, Washington DC, US.
Tamzin Jeffs
February 24  Fundraiser: in support of SUDEP Aware and to celebrate the life of Jordan Fawcett, 'Jordan's Slide for SUDEP', Beaver Valley Ski Club, Markdale, Ontario, Canada.
Tamzin Jeffs



Raising awareness in 2012:

November 30-December 4  Booth manning/Conference participation: American Epilepsy Society 66th Annual Meeting, San Diego, CA, USA.
Elizabeth Donner & Tamzin Jeffs
October 19-21 Conference presentation: Canadian League Against Epilepsy Biennial Meeting, Calgary, Canada.
Elizabeth Donner & Tamzin Jeffs
 
August 11Fundraiser: in support of SUDEP Aware and to celebrate the life of Traci Cleverley Pink, 'Shine On! for SUDEP', Roxy Theatre, Owen Sound, Canada.
Tamzin Jeffs
 
July 17-22 Fundraiser: in support of SUDEP Aware and to celebrate the life of Olivia Mullin, 'Cycle for Olly', 500kms in 6 days, London to Toronto, Canada.
Tamzin Jeffs
June 22-24 Conference presentation & sponsorship: first SUDEP-dedicated, Partners Against Mortality in Epilepsy (PAME) conference, Chicago, USA.
Elizabeth Donner & Tamzin Jeffs
June 6-8Conference presentation: 47th Annual Canadian Neurological Sciences Federation, Calgary, Canada.
Elizabeth Donner
 
March 6Epilepsy & SUDEP briefings: with Ontario's Members of Provincial Parliament at Epilepsy Action Day, Legislative Building, Queens Park, Toronto, Canada.
Tamzin Jeffs
February 22  SUDEP seminar: With co-presenters Dr Peter Carlen (Toronto Western Hospital) and Dr Rajesh RamachandranNair (McMaster Children's Hospital), Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada.
Elizabeth Donner 
February 24  Fundraiser: in support of SUDEP Aware and to celebrate the life of Jordan Fawcett, 'Jordan's Slide for SUDEP', Beaver Valley Ski Club, Markdale, Ontario, Canada.
Elizabeth Donner & Tamzin Jeffs
February 4 SUDEP discussion panel: at Epilepsy Therapy Project's 'Family & Friends' Day, Epilepsy Pipeline Conference, San Francisco, USA.
Tamzin Jeffs



Raising awareness in 2011:

December 2-6 Booth manning/Conference participation: American Epilepsy Society 65th Annual Meeting, Baltimore, MD, USA.
Elizabeth Donner & Tamzin Jeffs
  
December 2 SUDEP presentation: "SUDEP: What Families and their Caregivers Want to Know" at the 25th Annual Advances in the Management of Epilepsy and the Epilepsy Clinic program, Baltimore, USA.
Elizabeth Donner & Tamzin Jeffs
November 19SUDEP presentation and promotion of SUDEP Aware's mission and goals at 2011 Annual Education Conference for Coroners & Pathologists, Toronto.
Elizabeth Donner
August 28-September 1 SUDEP book launch at 29th International Epilepsy Congress, Rome, Italy, with Epilepsy Bereaved & Epilepsy Australia
Tamzin Jeffs
 
May 27Presentation: "Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy" at the Centre for Forensic Science & Medicine 2010-2011 Seminar Series, Toronto.
Elizabeth Donner
April 11Presentation: "SUDEP: Efforts to Explain the Unexplained" at the 63rd AAN Annual Meeting, 'Integrated Neuroscience - Childhood Epilepsy: Bench to Bedside' session, Hawaii.
Elizabeth Donner
 
March 2Briefings: to discuss epilepsy & SUDEP with Ontario's Members of Provincial Parliament at Epilepsy Action Day, Legislative Building, Queens Park, Toronto.
Tamzin Jeffs



Raising awareness in 2010:

December 3-7 Conference participation: American Epilepsy Society 64th Annual Meeting, San Antonio, TX, USA.
Elizabeth Donner & Tamzin Jeffs  
October 28-30SUDEP presentation and promotion of SUDEP Aware's mission and goals at 2010 Annual Education Conference for Coroners & Pathologists, Toronto.
Elizabeth Donner & Tamzin Jeffs
October 13 Participants in CDC/NIH Epilepsy Mortality Surveillance Planning Meeting, Washington DC.
Tamzin Jeffs & Elizabeth Donner
October 1-3Promotion of SUDEP Aware's mission and goals at 2010 Canadian Epilepsy Meeting, Kingston.
Tamzin Jeffs & Elizabeth Donner
June 9Presentation: "Canadian SUDEP Register for Children" to Canadian Pediatric Epilepsy Network, Quebec City.
Elizabeth Donner & Tamzin Jeffs
May 13-14Promotion of SUDEP Aware's mission and goals at Centre for Forensic Science & Medicine Conference "Death Investigation and Forensic Medicine for Police, Coroners and Pathologists", Toronto.
Tamzin Jeffs & Elizabeth Donner
March 22Presentation: "The Impact of Sudden Death in Epilepsy" at American Association of Neuroscience Nurses, 42nd Annual Educational Meeting, Baltimore, USA.
Thanks to funding by Epilepsy Foundation.
Tamzin Jeffs & Tess Sierzant (HealthEast Care System, St Joseph's Hospital, MN, USA)
March 1Promotion of SUDEP Aware's mission and goals with Ontario's Members of Provincial Parliament at an Information Session on Epilepsy for Purple Day, Legislative Building, Queens Park, Toronto.
Tamzin Jeffs
February 24 Presentation: "SUDEP: Case Studies" at Paediatric Rounds, Toronto East General Hospital, Toronto.
Elizabeth Donner



Raising awareness in 2009: 


December 4-8 Promotion of SUDEP Aware's mission and goals at American Epilepsy Society Annual Meeting, Boston, USA.
Elizabeth Donner & Tamzin Jeffs
 
November 20-21Promotion of SUDEP Aware's mission and goals at Pathology Update 2009, Toronto.
Elizabeth Donner & Tamzin Jeffs
November 9Presentation: "SUDEP: Case Studies" at 9th Annual Neuroscience Day at the Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto.
Elizabeth Donner
May 24Participant in Table Top Talk on 'SUDEP' at World Federation of Neuroscience Nurses Congress 2009, Toronto.
Tamzin Jeffs
April 29Presentation: "Sudden Unexplained Death in Epilepsy: Case Studies" at Contemporary Clinical Issues and Case Studies Plenary Session, American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting 2009, Seattle, USA.
Elizabeth Donner
April 22Presentation: "SUDEP: Clinical, Personal & Ethical Considerations" at UHN Epilepsy Program Research/UTERP Rounds, Toronto Western Hospital, Toronto.
Elizabeth Donner, Tamzin Jeffs & Christine Harrison
March 31Promotion of SUDEP Aware's mission and goals with Ontario's Members of Provincial Parliament at an Information Session on Epilepsy for Purple Day, Legislative Building, Queens Park, Toronto.
Tamzin Jeffs 
March 6                  SUDEP presentation at J.C. Richardson Neurology Subspeciality Day event, University of Toronto, Toronto.
Elizabeth Donner































Raising awareness in 2008: 


November 19Presentation: "SUDEP: Clinical, Personal & Ethical Considerations" at Neurology Grand Rounds, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto.
Elizabeth Donner, Tamzin Jeffs & Christine Harrison*
November 12-14Participant & Session Moderator at SUDEP workshop, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Maryland, USA.
Elizabeth Donner
November 1Meeting for SUDEP-affected families, Toronto.
Elizabeth Donner & Tamzin Jeffs
October 4    Presentation: "SUDEP: Clinical, Personal & Ethical Considerations" at Joint 7th Canadian Epilepsy Research Initiative (CERI) & Canadian Epilepsy Alliance (CEA) meeting, London, Ontario.
Elizabeth Donner, Tamzin Jeffs & Christine Harrison*

* SUDEP Aware's co-founders, Dr Elizabeth Donner and Tamzin Jeffs, are very grateful to Dr Christine Harrison, Director Bioethics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, for her generous donation of time and expertise towards these presentations.