The History, Justification, and Purpose of Mental Health Law

2021 ◽  
pp. 34-52
Author(s):  
Kay Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Common Law ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Systemic Reform ◽  
Health Law ◽  
Mental Health Law ◽  
Incremental Change ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Common

Chapter 2 examines the historical development of mental health law in England (which is similar to the rest of the common law world, including America, Canada, and Australia) and uses that history to consider the justification, purpose, and need for mental health law from Ancient Greece to the present. Contrary to the claims of abolitionists that mental health law has essentially always stayed the same, it demonstrates a history of continuous legal and systemic reform in mental health law. Rather than an over-zealous and interfering state keen to exercise social control over persons with mental impairment, it instead depicts a state which for the most part reluctantly only became involved in the care of persons with mental health problems when informal care by family and friends failed or was non-existent, to prevent abuses by private operators, and as an incident of its administration of the criminal law. When set against the background of the fashions, cycles, and recurring themes of mental health law, the call of abolition can be conceptualized as simply the latest fad in its evolution. Further, many of the issues which arise from mental health problems will continue to exist even without mental health law. Mental health law can be positive and negative, including defining and protecting rights and allocating resources. The chapter cautions against being too optimistic about the promises of sweeping revolutionary changes which have never really delivered (deinstitutionalization or the ‘abolition’ of the asylum being the most poignant example), in favour of solid incremental change.

Opinions of professionals and family members about the National mental health law regulating involuntary commitment of psychiatric patients: An international comparative study in 10 countries

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. S337-S337
Author(s):  
I. Georgieva ◽  
C. Lauvrud ◽  
R. Almvik ◽  
R. Whittington
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Psychiatric Patients ◽  
Family Members ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
Involuntary Commitment ◽  
Health Law ◽  
Mental Health Law ◽  
National Mental Health

IntroductionPrevious research illustrated that the laws regulating involuntary placement and treatment of persons with mental health problems are very diverse across countries: procedures for involuntary commitment and stakeholders involved in the initiation and decision making vary across countries; most laws include criteria of danger/risk, which take various forms in EU Member States’ legal frameworks, while the need for treatment in the best interests of the patient is sufficient to detain individuals in other countries, etc.ObjectivesThis study will compare the opinions of professionals and family members about the operation of the National mental health law regulating forcibly admission and treatment of psychiatric patients in ten countries: Ireland, Iceland, UK, Romania, Slovenia, Denmark, Sweden, Germany, Norway and India.AimsTo gain insights into stakeholders’ satisfaction with the operation of their national legislation and to compare the effectiveness and acceptability of different legislative processes across countries. Such scientific findings are needed in order to improve and harmonize legal practices, and to enhance fundamental rights protection of persons with mental health problems, which eventually could result in a lower rate of compulsory admissions.MethodsA short anonymous questionnaire consisting of 9 items was developed, using the online software Survey Monkey. It was distributed to representative samples via e-mail to psychiatrists, general practitioners, acute and community mental health nurses, tribunal members, guards and family members in each collaborating country. The levels of agreement/disagreement were measured on a Likert- scale.Results/ConclusionsThe study's results and conclusions will be presented at the conference.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

scholarly journals Mental health law in Peru: work in progress

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 93-94
Author(s):  
David Jimenez ◽  
Christina Alejandrina Eguiguren ◽  
Dominic Dougall ◽  
Bartłomiej Pliszka ◽  
Ian Hall
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
At Risk ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Constitutional Rights ◽  
Health Law ◽  
Mental Health Law ◽  
National Legislation ◽  
Work In Progress

Mental health law in Peru is developing. The Peruvian Constitution enshrines important human rights principles in relation to people with mental health problems but the enactment of such principles into national legislation is very patchy. This means that people with mental health problems, especially those admitted to hospital, may not receive optimum care and may be at risk of having their human rights breached. In this article we consider how far the current national legislation meets these constitutional rights and what the legislation that is in development may ultimately achieve.

scholarly journals Predictors of clinical deterioration in patients with suspected COVID-19 managed in a ‘virtual hospital’ setting: a cohort study

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. e045356
Author(s):  
Nick A Francis ◽  
Beth Stuart ◽  
Matthew Knight ◽  
Rama Vancheeswaran ◽  
Charles Oliver ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Hospital Setting ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Clinical Deterioration ◽  
Care Services ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Remote Assessment ◽  
History Of

ObjectiveIdentify predictors of clinical deterioration in a virtual hospital (VH) setting for COVID-19.DesignReal-world prospective observational study.SettingVH remote assessment service in West Hertfordshire NHS Trust, UK.ParticipantsPatients with suspected COVID-19 illness enrolled directly from the community (postaccident and emergency (A&E) or medical intake assessment) or postinpatient admission.Main outcome measureDeath or (re-)admission to inpatient hospital care during VH follow-up and for 2 weeks post-VH discharge.Results900 patients with a clinical diagnosis of COVID-19 (455 referred from A&E or medical intake and 445 postinpatient) were included in the analysis. 76 (8.4%) of these experienced clinical deterioration (15 deaths in admitted patients, 3 deaths in patients not admitted and 58 additional inpatient admissions). Predictors of clinical deterioration were increase in age (OR 1.04 (95% CI 1.02 to 1.06) per year of age), history of cancer (OR 2.87 (95% CI 1.41 to 5.82)), history of mental health problems (OR 1.76 (95% CI 1.02 to 3.04)), severely impaired renal function (OR for eGFR <30=9.09 (95% CI 2.01 to 41.09)) and having a positive SARS-CoV-2 PCR result (OR 2.0 (95% CI 1.11 to 3.60)).ConclusionsThese predictors may help direct intensity of monitoring for patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 who are being remotely monitored by primary or secondary care services. Further research is needed to confirm our findings and identify the reasons for increased risk of clinical deterioration associated with cancer and mental health problems.

7. Mental Health Law

Medical Law ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 351-419
Author(s):  
Emily Jackson
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Community Treatment ◽  
Health Law ◽  
Persons With Disabilities ◽  
Mental Health Law ◽  
Mental Health Act ◽  
Independent Review ◽  
History Of ◽  
Human Rights Act ◽  
The Uk

All books in this flagship series contain carefully selected substantial extracts from key cases, legislation, and academic debate, providing able students with a stand-alone resource. This chapter discusses mental health law in the UK. It begins with a brief history of mental health law and policy. This is followed by discussions of: admission to the mental health system; treatment of the mentally ill under the Mental Health Act 1983; Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and Cheshire West, and Community Treatment Orders. It also looks at the implications of the Human Rights Act and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) for mental health law. It also considers the conclusions of the Independent Review of the Mental Health Act 1983.

Psychological distress among Vietnamese adults attending Vietnamese-speaking general practices in South Western Sydney: prevalence and associations

2016 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 354 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thi Nguyen ◽  
Sarah Dennis ◽  
Huy An ◽  
Sanjyot Vagholkar ◽  
Siaw Teng Liaw
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Past History ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
High Exposure ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
History Of ◽  
General Practices ◽  
Exposure To Trauma

Objective The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of psychological distress among Vietnamese adults attending Vietnamese-speaking general practices and explore possible risk factors in this population. Methods A cross-sectional survey of Vietnamese adult patients was conducted at 25 general practices with Vietnamese-speaking general practitioners (GPs) in south-western Sydney between October 2012 and February 2013. Patients completed the Kessler (K10) scale and a demographic questionnaire, available in Vietnamese or English. Data were analysed using SPSS version 21. Results Of the 350 patients invited to participate, 247 completed surveys (response rate 71%). One-quarter (25%) of participants had a very high K10 score for psychological distress, nearly twice that reported in the NSW Health Survey. Participants with high exposure to trauma were at increased risk of psychological distress (odds ratio 5.9, 95% confidence interval 2.4–14.4; P < 0.0001) compared with those with mild or no trauma exposure. Similarly, risk was increased if there was a past history of mental health problems and a lack of personal and social support. Conclusion The high prevalence of mental health problems in adult Vietnamese people attending Vietnamese-speaking general practices is associated with exposure to trauma. This highlights the importance of personal, social and professional support in effective management. Vietnamese-speaking GPs who see Vietnamese or similar refugee groups should actively seek out a history of exposure to trauma, a past history of mental illness and the existence of support systems.

A history of mental health problems may predict maternal distress in women postpartum

Midwifery ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 122-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louise Seimyr ◽  
Barbara Welles-Nyström ◽  
Eva Nissen
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Maternal Distress ◽  
History Of

scholarly journals Prevalence of Mental Health Problems and Its Associated Factors Among Recovered COVID-19 Patients During the Pandemic: A Single-Center Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mojgan Khademi ◽  
Roya Vaziri-Harami ◽  
Jamal Shams
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Associated Factors ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Female Gender ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Care Workers ◽  
Patient Health ◽  
History Of

Introduction: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), is profoundly affecting the mental health status. Although the burden of mental health problems has been reported in the general population and health care workers, little is known about the prevalence of mental health disorders among recovered COVID-19 patients and their associated factors.Methods: A cross-sectional telephonic-study of recovered COVID-19 patients with and without a history of hospitalization was conducted from April 20 to June 20, 2020, in Tehran, Iran. We assessed the anxiety symptoms, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among participants, using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-4) and PTSD checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5). Logistic regression analyses were used to explore the risk factors associated with mental health problems.Results: A total of 602 individuals with a mean age of 53.2 years (SD: 14.7), completed the study. The rates of mental health symptoms among the respondents were 5.8% (95% CI: 4.2–7.8%) for anxiety, 5.0% (95% CI: 3.5–7.0%) for depression, and 3.8% (95% CI: 2.3–5.3%) for PTSD disorders. Moreover, being younger than 50 years and female gender was significantly associated with a higher probability of reporting anxiety (p &lt; 0.01), and depression (p &lt; 0.001 for being younger than 50 years, p &lt; 0.02 for female gender).Conclusions: The current study indicated that patients with COVID-19 presented features of anxiety, depression, and PTSD. These results may help implement appropriate mental health intervention policies for those at risk and minimize the mental health consequences of the COVID-19.

scholarly journals Mood and neural responses to social rejection do not seem to be altered in resilient adolescents with a history of adversity

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 411-423
Author(s):  
Jessica Fritz ◽  
Jason Stretton ◽  
Adrian Dahl Askelund ◽  
Susanne Schweizer ◽  
Nicholas D. Walsh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Childhood Adversity ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Social Rejection ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Neural Responses ◽  
Social Feedback ◽  
Dorsal Anterior Cingulate Cortex ◽  
History Of

AbstractChildhood adversity (CA) increases the risk of subsequent mental health problems. Adolescent social support (from family and/or friends) reduces the risk of mental health problems after CA. However, the mechanisms of this effect remain unclear, and we speculate that they are manifested on neurodevelopmental levels. Therefore, we investigated whether family and/or friendship support at ages 14 and 17 function as intermediate variables for the relationship between CA before age 11 and affective or neural responses to social rejection feedback at age 18. We studied 55 adolescents with normative mental health at age 18 (26 with CA and therefore considered “resilient”), from a longitudinal cohort. Participants underwent a Social Feedback Task in the magnetic resonance imaging scanner. Social rejection feedback activated the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex and the left anterior insula. CA did not predict affective or neural responses to social rejection at age 18. Yet, CA predicted better friendships at age 14 and age 18, when adolescents with and without CA had comparable mood levels. Thus, adolescents with CA and normative mood levels have more adolescent friendship support and seem to have normal mood and neural responses to social rejection.

The Case for the Abolition of Mental Health Law

2021 ◽  
pp. 53-90
Author(s):  
Kay Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Independent Living ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Health Law ◽  
Disability Rights ◽  
Mental Impairment ◽  
Mental Health Law ◽  
Poor Treatment ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Right

Chapter 3 traces the history of opposition to mental health law including anti-psychiatry and the emergence of the disability rights movement explaining where the call for the abolition of mental health law has come from and why it has emerged in international human rights law now. It argues that the call for abolition is more than just a reaction to historically poor treatment, but is a qualitatively different basis for understanding mental impairment. It explains the Abolition with Support model and sets out the key arguments for the abolition of mental health law being that mental health law is a form of social control of non-conformists, that it is discriminatory and a denial of legal capacity, that free and informed consent is integral to the right to health, that it is an unjustified interference with liberty, that it is an unjustified interference with the integrity of the person, that it is a form of torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment and punishment, that it is inconsistent with the right to independent living, that it is ineffective and un-therapeutic, that there are better non-coercive alternatives, that it undermines the ‘dignity of risk’ of persons with mental impairment, and that mental health law is too ‘easy’ and creates a culture of coercion throughout the entire mental health system. While I ultimately argue against the abolition of mental health law in favour of substantial reform, I argue that it is important to listen to and properly understand abolitionists’ concerns in order to improve mental health law and include persons with mental impairment in the policy-making and health-care decision-making process.

Women in Prison With Traumatic Brain Injury: Prevalence, Mechanism, and Impact on Mental Health

2017 ◽  
Vol 62 (10) ◽  
pp. 3135-3150 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel Woolhouse ◽  
Audrey McKinlay ◽  
Randolph C. Grace
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Prison Population ◽  
Female Offenders ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Treatment Programs ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
History Of

Relatively little is known about the characteristics of female offenders. Here, we studied the prevalence of traumatic brain injury (TBI) and mental health issues in an exclusively female prison population in New Zealand. Participants ( N = 38) were recruited from all security levels at Christchurch Women’s Prison. Measures for depression, anxiety, and stress, sleep, and a history of TBI were administered; 94.7% (36/38) of participants presented with a history of TBI. Younger age at first injury was associated with an increased risk of mental health problems. The study concludes that TBI is highly prevalent among female offenders and may be linked to increased mental health problems. TBI should be considered as an important factor in offender pathways and treatment programs.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document