Kentucky Neuroscience Institute’s Dr. Bensalem-Owen named American Clinical Neurophysiology Society President

Dr. Meriem Bensalem-Owen, director of the Epilepsy Program at UK HealthCare’s Kentucky Neuroscience Institute, recently added another national distinction to her professional profile.

Dr. Bensalem-Owen has been named president of the American Clinical Neurophysiology Society (ACNS). Founded in 1946, ACNS is the leading U.S. professional organization devoted to the establishment and maintenance of standards of excellence in clinical neurophysiology.

ACNS members utilize neurophysiology techniques in the diagnosis and management of patients with disorders of the nervous system and in research examining the function of the nervous system in health and disease.

Dr. Bensalem-Owen will serve a one-year term leading the organization as it works to advance the field of neurophysiology.

“As a Society, we will continue to enhance our commitment to advance the science, practice, and profession of clinical neurophysiology,” Dr. Bensalem-Owen wrote in a recent ACNS newsletter. “We will continue to welcome emerging fields of clinical neurophysiology, driven by the development of neurotechnological and analytic tools such as artificial intelligence.”

Dr. Bensalem-Owen is board certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in epilepsy and neurology. She specializes in the care of adults with epilepsy, with a special focus on the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy, and has special interests in responsive neuro-stimulation as well as caring for women with epilepsy during their reproductive years.

Dr. Bensalem-Owen has been instrumental in helping UK HealthCare’s Epilepsy Program maintain its accreditation by the National Association of Epilepsy Centers (NAEC) as a Level 4 program – the highest level of care possible.

Nearly 15 years ago, Dr. Bensalem-Owen was tasked with leading the epilepsy program on her own after a senior colleague departed. Since then, she has overseen a massive expansion of the program in terms of staff, treatment capabilities and innovation. She’s helped build and maintain a program that utilizes technology and provides services unavailable at lower-level epilepsy centers.

As president of the ACNS, Dr. Bensalem-Owen will have the opportunity to make an even bigger impact on the community of professionals dedicated to the field of neurophysiology.