EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE: Friday, Dec. 3, 2021, 4:00 PM CST
CONTACT: media@aesnet.org
CHICAGO - Gardiner Lapham, MPH, RN was presented with the 2021 Extraordinary
Contributions to the Field of Epilepsy Award during the 2021 Annual Meeting of the American
Epilepsy Society (AES).
This award is designated for those who have made extraordinary
contributions across multiple fronts, including science, education, leadership, and advocacy.
The award is only presented in those years when the board of directors determines there is an
individual whose accomplishments embody the spirit of the recognition.
Gardiner Lapham is a passionate epilepsy advocate. After losing her 4-year-old son to SUDEP,
Gardiner became actively involved in the epilepsy community. She is former board chair of
Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy (CURE Epilepsy) and a co-founder and current chair of
Partners Against Mortality in Epilepsy (PAME). Gardiner also cares deeply about narrowing the
epilepsy treatment gap in low-income countries, especially Africa. She currently serves on the
International League Against Epilepsy’s Global Outreach Taskforce.
Gardiner is a trustee of the BAND Foundation which supports SUDEP prevention and education
work, as well as efforts to reduce the treatment gap in low-income countries. Gardiner has
served as a health policy adviser for the humanitarian organization CARE, as an emergency
room nurse at Atlanta’s Grady Memorial Hospital, and as a trustee of The Washington Free
Clinic and Whitman-Walker Health. She lives in Washington, D.C. with her husband and three
children.