Filming a Seizure: A Practical Guide for Care and Education Settings

Video footage of a seizure can give specialists valuable information about seizure type and help with diagnosis and treatment decisions. Filming must never replace or delay first aid. In care and education settings, filming should only happen with documented consent or a lawful best-interests decision, using a secure process for storing and sharing the footage.

Why video helps specialists

Most seizures happen away from a hospital or clinic, so specialists usually rely on eyewitness descriptions. Even trained observers can find it difficult to recall exactly what happened, especially in a stressful moment.

Video can show details that are hard to describe, including:

• how the seizure started
• movements of the face, eyes and limbs
• whether movements affected one or both sides of the body
• breathing and colour changes
• how long each phase lasted
• what recovery looked like

NICE guideline NG217 on epilepsies recognises eyewitness accounts, including video recordings, as useful information for specialists. Many epilepsy teams now ask families and carers to record seizures where it is safe to do so.

Safety comes first

Filming is always secondary to the person’s safety. Before anyone picks up a phone or tablet:

• seizure first aid must already be under way
• the start time must be noted
• hazards must be moved away
• rescue medication, if prescribed, must be ready to give in line with the care plan

Ideally, one person gives first aid while a second person films. If you are alone, give first aid and only film if doing so does not distract you from caring for the person. Never delay a 999 call or rescue medication in order to film.

Consent and capacity

In professional settings, filming a seizure involves recording someone at a very vulnerable moment. It must be planned and agreed in advance. It should not be decided on the spot.

Adults

Where an adult has the capacity to decide, discuss filming with them in advance. Record their decision in their care plan, including:

• whether they agree to be filmed
• who may film
• who the footage may be shared with
• how long it will be kept

Where an adult lacks capacity to make this decision, a best-interests decision must be made and recorded under the relevant mental capacity legislation:

• England and Wales: Mental Capacity Act 2005
• Scotland: Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000
• Northern Ireland: Mental Capacity Act (Northern Ireland) 2016

Family members and the person’s healthcare team should be involved where appropriate.

Children and young people

For pupils, agree arrangements with parents or carers and record them in the Individual Healthcare Plan (IHP). Take the child’s own views into account in line with their age and understanding. Schools should ideally act on a request from the child’s healthcare team rather than filming routinely.

How to film a seizure well

If filming has been agreed and it is safe to do so:

• Start filming as early as possible. The first few seconds often carry the most useful information.
• Capture the whole body where possible, with the face visible.
• Keep filming until the seizure ends and into the early recovery period.
• Show the time. A clock in shot or a spoken time helps establish duration.
• Describe what you see aloud, such as “no response to name” or “right arm is stiffening”.
• Protect dignity. Film only what is needed. Adjust clothing or use a blanket where appropriate, provided this does not interfere with first aid.

Afterwards, complete the usual seizure record. Video supports a written record. It does not replace one.

Data protection: storing and sharing footage

Seizure footage is health information. Under UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, it is special category data and must be handled with particular care. These rules apply across the UK.

Organisations should have a written procedure that covers:

• Which device is used. An organisation-owned, secured device is strongly preferred over staff personal phones.
• How footage is transferred. Use a secure, approved method to send footage to the person’s healthcare team or family.
• Deletion. Remove footage from the recording device promptly once it has been transferred.
• Access. Only the people named in the consent or best-interests record should see the footage.
• Retention. Set out how long footage is kept and who is responsible for deleting it.

Footage must never be shared on social media, in staff group chats or through personal messaging apps. Sharing seizure footage inappropriately is a serious breach of privacy and may also be a safeguarding concern.

Building filming into policy

For care providers, schools and other organisations, filming works best when it is part of an agreed plan rather than an ad hoc decision. A good approach includes:

• recording filming arrangements in the care plan or IHP
• including filming procedures in staff training and induction
• reviewing arrangements whenever the care plan is reviewed
• making sure staff know that first aid always comes first

Frequently asked questions

Is it okay to film someone having a seizure?

It can be helpful when it has been agreed in advance and first aid is already under way. In professional settings, there should always be documented consent or a recorded best-interests decision.

Should I film a seizure or help the person?

Always help the person first. If a second person is available, they can film while you give first aid.

What should I do with the video afterwards?

Share it only with the person’s healthcare team or the people named in the care plan, using a secure method. Then delete it from the recording device.