Q&A - Global challenges of epilepsy management - an interview with Gretchen Birbeck

Introduction Gretchen Birbeck is a Professor of Neurology and Epidemiology at Michigan State University. She has roles in clinical neurology, epidemiology and health services research with a keen interest in the optimal management of neurological conditions in resource-limited settings. Based in southern Africa for half of the year, she has firsthand experience in the management of such conditions and, in particular, of epilepsy, which is one of her main areas of interest (Figure 1). Gretchen is also one of the guest editors for the BMC Medicine article collection, Medicine for Global Health. Here we talk to Gretchen about her personal views on the challenges of epilepsy management from a global perspective. The podcast for this interview is available at: http://www. biomedcentral.com/sites/2999/download/Birbeck.mp3