Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to improve the early diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) set out best practice guidance for clinicians in Epilepsies: diagnosis and management. Updated guidance was issued in 2016 and covers assessment, referral, diagnosis, treatment and management of epilepsy and seizures in children, young people and adults in primary and secondary care. It offers best practice advice on managing epilepsy to improve health outcomes so that people with epilepsy can fully participate in daily life. A copy of the updated 2016 guideline is attached.

The NICE guidance recommends that people having a first seizure should be seen as soon as possible by a specialist.