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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

24 hours in A&E

65 replies

1down · 19/07/2023 21:47

How do they get the unwell or injured patients concent? Do they film first then ask?
Watching it ATM and a lad has been taken to the hospital after being run over. He was airlifted in. In no condition to agree to something. So do they film all his medical stuff to the point he can say yes and if he says no they then delete?? His family didn't get to the hospital till an hour later. And they can't give his permission anyway.
Because if it happens like that it seems like a total violation of his privacy.
Anyone know?

OP posts:
lljkk · 19/07/2023 23:16

already been filmed before the person is able to concent. So their privacy has already been invaded.

How is that so different from CCTV, which is everywhere including in the same hospitals. TV Broadcast is what consent is for.

Unless you commit a crime, then it gets broadcast anyway, consent or not.

I'm amazed I've never seen patients try to assault the health care workers on these programmes. Guess they didn't get consent...

XenoBitch · 19/07/2023 23:19

lljkk · 19/07/2023 23:16

already been filmed before the person is able to concent. So their privacy has already been invaded.

How is that so different from CCTV, which is everywhere including in the same hospitals. TV Broadcast is what consent is for.

Unless you commit a crime, then it gets broadcast anyway, consent or not.

I'm amazed I've never seen patients try to assault the health care workers on these programmes. Guess they didn't get consent...

CCTV is a world apart from a camera crew zooming in on a poorly loved ones face, or filming conversations in the waiting room.
It is also different to filming a very intimate interaction between someone on a bridge and the cops trying to talk them down.

Bluelightbaby · 19/07/2023 23:24

We regularly have film crews at our ambulance station. They film first then ask for consent, either from patient or family of

Bluelightbaby · 19/07/2023 23:25

I should add as we go into a job we ask them and then legal consent is gathered after all filming

Original poster
1down · 19/07/2023 23:27

Cctv is there for the saftey of all the staff and users. Not the entertainment of the masses.
And is not in areas where treatment may be happening and could be of a personal nature. It would be illegal to have cctv in a bay for instance as people would potentially be undressed etc.

I'm not really sure what you mean about assault tho

OP posts:
Original poster
1down · 19/07/2023 23:28

Bluelightbaby · 19/07/2023 23:24

We regularly have film crews at our ambulance station. They film first then ask for consent, either from patient or family of

What happens if the patient is not able to either give or deny concent?

OP posts:
XenoBitch · 19/07/2023 23:31

Bluelightbaby · 19/07/2023 23:24

We regularly have film crews at our ambulance station. They film first then ask for consent, either from patient or family of

Can the staff deny consent?
TBH, I would think poorly of a paramedic who would let film crew go out with them.

BumWhisperers · 19/07/2023 23:32

What gets me is that for some procedures or in investigations, private regions of the body would be seen on the footage - even if you dont consent to it being shown on tv, the very fact that it was filmed at all would make me seriously angry and feel very violated.

Swansandcustard · 19/07/2023 23:35

24 hrs in police Custody: police/staff are asked if they’re happy to be featured, blurred out if they’re not happy. Those victims/witnesses/suspects are all asked.

The cameras are set up rolling at intervals, for an interesting job a crew trots around and films specific segments. There are fixed cameras inside offices as well as traditional mobile cams and microphones. The on site teams are YOUNG! And lovely 🙂

TaigaSno · 19/07/2023 23:36

Leo227 · 19/07/2023 21:51

at St George's once when I went there were signs everywhere saying filming was taking place, so they must film a bit of it and then ask consent when possible

I've heard before that this was the case, and it really annoyed me. For some people, they wouldn't want to be on camera for all sorts of reasons, and I wonder if there was ever an instance that someone needed to go to hospital but didn't go because they were worried about being filmed. It seems horribly invasive, the way they do it.

XenoBitch · 19/07/2023 23:40

I just Googled about consent required for such programs. For 999 Whats Your Emergency, you can still appear on the series even if you do not give consent. You are blurred out/voice is disguised. This is disgusting.

I would absolutely still recognise myself.

FannyCann · 19/07/2023 23:47

No way would I consent. My pain/distress/family member's accident is not entertainment for the masses.

Maybe we should get bright red wristbands saying #NoConsent to wear like emergency alert bracelets, that hospitals and camera crew all recognise.

wbanso · 19/07/2023 23:49

FannyCann · 19/07/2023 23:47

No way would I consent. My pain/distress/family member's accident is not entertainment for the masses.

Maybe we should get bright red wristbands saying #NoConsent to wear like emergency alert bracelets, that hospitals and camera crew all recognise.

You're going to wear a wrist band every day in case you somehow end up in car crash and can't say no to filming, seems a bit OTT.

CactusUmbrella · 19/07/2023 23:57

I was on 24 hours in A&E so feel I can answer this!

They asked my sibling (who was the one rushed into the hospital) for consent. They groggily said yes.

They had the main story of the episode and I was interviewed as part of it. They asked constantly for consent, we signed so many forms and had so many opportunities to pull out. One of the crew came round and showed us the DVD first, too. To make sure we were happy.

They were all very nice!

(PS the interviews with the family are filmed in airbnbs rather than their houses!)

ASGIRC · 19/07/2023 23:58

From what ive seen, in resus, at St Georges, it doesnt seem like there are many camera crews. The cameras seem to be fixed, most in the ceiling/sides of the rooms. Much like CCTV.
And then there might be crews once the family is there and the patient is awake and probably has given consent.

CactusUmbrella · 20/07/2023 00:00

All fixed cameras when we were there. No crews, just one producer who asked consent and gave us mics clipped on.

AlphaAlpha · 20/07/2023 00:01

Static cameras are set up all over the department at St George's, and there is an army of production team members (that will wear brown scrubs) There is no actual camera operator in the department, so it's not as physically intrusive as it looks.
Filming is indeed 24/7 for about 6-8 weeks for each period.
There is not someone watching the live footage constantly. If an 'interesting' job comes in then one of the production team will obviously seek out the patient or their family to gain consent to potentially use their story/footage. It is not a hard sell.
They also have to gain consent from hospital staff and ambulance crews.
If the story is broadcast, they will inform you of when with a further chance to rescind consent.

In its early years, first filmed at Kings College hospital then later St George's, I thought it was very sensitively done and also highlighted the utter shit that the ED and ambulance crews had to deal with.
Then it become very formulaic, almost samey.

Gingernaut · 20/07/2023 00:41

I've been in a similar situation, where I was offered a badge if I didn't want to be filmed.

Anyone with a badge was either edited out or blurred in the final footage.

PostItInABook · 20/07/2023 00:54

I had a camera person come out with me on the ambulance for a similar programme quite a few years ago now, though it didn’t really feature some of the harder hitting things you see in todays programmes.

We could also tell the camera person not to film at an incident if we wanted, or to film from a certain point/distance away and they would do exactly as we asked. Sometimes I told them not to even bother getting out of the ambulance.

There was a lot of paperwork to sign and conversations at various points and everyone was invited to watch any footage they hoped to use to decide if you wanted to consent to it being shown.

EmmaEmerald · 20/07/2023 00:57

Overlycautiousbynature · 19/07/2023 21:53

It's a gross invasion of privacy having that choice taken away from you when you're vulnerable

Yes, I still can't believe it's not considered a breach of human rights, it's insane. I don't watch those shows.

FannyCann · 20/07/2023 06:59

You're going to wear a wrist band every day in case you somehow end up in car crash and can't say no to filming, seems a bit OTT.

LOL. I was joking @wbanso but perhaps didn't make my post jokey enough.

avaviolet · 20/07/2023 07:02

I agree, shows like that are basically unethical. I don't know how the hospitals can allow it.

lljkk · 20/07/2023 07:37

XenoBitch · 19/07/2023 23:40

I just Googled about consent required for such programs. For 999 Whats Your Emergency, you can still appear on the series even if you do not give consent. You are blurred out/voice is disguised. This is disgusting.

I would absolutely still recognise myself.

Don't watch Police Interceptors then.
A lot of the Jo public types on there are definitely vulnerable.
Or Can't Pay We'll take it Away : they blur the faces on that now, but didn't used to
All those programmes (multiple cloned) about air ambulance rescue...
Or Attacks in A&E

Justleaveitblankthen · 20/07/2023 08:00

CactusUmbrella · 19/07/2023 23:57

I was on 24 hours in A&E so feel I can answer this!

They asked my sibling (who was the one rushed into the hospital) for consent. They groggily said yes.

They had the main story of the episode and I was interviewed as part of it. They asked constantly for consent, we signed so many forms and had so many opportunities to pull out. One of the crew came round and showed us the DVD first, too. To make sure we were happy.

They were all very nice!

(PS the interviews with the family are filmed in airbnbs rather than their houses!)

Please tell me that this top rating programme offers generous payment for everyone's time and trouble throughout?

Dontcallmescarface · 20/07/2023 08:32

If you're so concerned about violation of privacy why are you watching the program?