Latest News UAP’s CEO, David Jennings, Supports the Encephalitis Society

UAP’s CEO, David Jennings, Supports the Encephalitis Society

Published on 2 July, 2020

Latest News

David Jennings, CEO of UAP Limited, has this year pledged to financially support the Encephalitis Society, a charity that aims to raise awareness of encephalitis and support those affected. His generous donation will be given across three years to fund various schemes and initiatives created by the charity that aim to raise awareness of encephalitis and generate helpful resources and fundamental research.

What is Encephalitis?

Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain, caused by an infection or through the immune system attacking the brain by mistake. Encephalitis can affect anyone at any age, with up to 6,000 cases each year in the UK.

The symptoms include a flu-like illness or headache in the infectious encephalitis cases, followed by more serious symptoms such as an “alteration in the level of consciousness” and seizures. Autoimmune encephalitis often has a longer onset with varying symptoms.

The brain is affected by encephalitis and it takes much longer to recover from injury than the rest of the body, so rehabilitation focuses on this, as well as coming to terms with the problems that can follow. This is what the Encephalitis Society works to contribute to by providing support, information, legal advice and community.

What will be done?

David has pledged to fund two major projects for the charity, supplying £150,000 over three years. The first of these projects is already underway, which is working to collaborate with encephalitis specialists to create content and support materials for young people who have been affected by the condition. This will include online learning modules and bespoke factsheets to help them deal with issues such as brain injury and the mental wellbeing issues that can follow. The project will also produce a curated video collection giving a voice to first-hand experiences of young people affected by encephalitis, available to watch on YouTube. Finally, the project will be creating the “Young Experts Scheme” which will enable young people to connect with peers similarly affected who can act as positive role models to form a community with. This project will help to enable young people affected by encephalitis to understand that they are not alone in their experiences and that there are resources and a community to help them – the sense of isolation can be one of the hardest parts of the condition to deal with.

The subsequent projects in following years will allow the Encephalitis Society to begin to develop their international work following an expert baseline situational analysis which is currently being undertaken, and which will inform the Charity’s international strategy going forward. This review will help the charity identify geographical areas of need and where global policy change is required. With thanks to the longer term funding from David Jennings, CEO at UAP they can build on this work, focusing their efforts, and really make a difference to the lives of people affected by encephalitis, wherever in the world they live.

To find out more about the Encephalitis Society click here.

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