Current appeal system for those detained in England and Wales under the Mental Health Act needs reform

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 173-177
Author(s):  
Paul Gosney ◽  
Paul Lomax ◽  
Carwyn Hooper ◽  
Aileen O’Brien
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Current System ◽  
Clinical Approach ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Mental Health Act ◽  
Psychiatric Conditions ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Right

The approach to managing the involuntary detention of people suffering from psychiatric conditions can be divided into those with clinicians at the forefront of decision-making and those who rely heavily on the judiciary. The system in England and Wales takes a clinical approach where doctors have widespread powers to detain and treat patients involuntarily. A protection in this system is the right of the individual to challenge a decision to deprive them of their liberty or treat them against their will. This protection is provided by the First-tier Tribunal; however, the number of successful appeals is low. In this paper, the system of appeal in England and Wales is outlined. This is followed by a discussion of why so few patients successfully appeal their detention with the conclusion that the current system is flawed. A number of recommendations about how the system might be reformed are offered.

Jurisprudential Aspects of the ‘Right’ to Retake Absconders from Mental Hospitals in England and Wales

1995 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 225-230
Author(s):  
Benjamin Andoh
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Mental Hospital ◽  
Hospital Staff ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Mental Hospitals ◽  
Mental Health Act ◽  
Statutory Authority ◽  
The Right

Statutory authority for retaking absconders from mental hospitals has existed ever since county asylums (the forerunners of mental hospitals) were first built in the nineteenth century. Today under the Mental Health Act, 1983 that ‘right’ can be exercised by the police, mental hospital staff, approved social workers, etc. This article looks at jurisprudential aspects of that ‘right’. It points out that ‘right’ actually means ‘power’ (not ‘privilege’, ‘claim’ or ‘immunity’). In addition it argues that the Mental Health Act, 1983 does only confer a power (rather than impose a duty) to retake absconders from mental hospitals and that there should not be statutory or other imposition of such a duty.

scholarly journals Mental Health Act Code of Practice

1999 ◽  
Vol 23 (10) ◽  
pp. 587-589
Author(s):  
Andrew Parkin
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Old People ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Code Of Practice ◽  
Mental Health Act ◽  
Department Of Health ◽  
The Right

The revised Code of Practice to the Mental Health Act 1983 (England and Wales) was published on 1 March 1999 (Department of Health & Welsh Office, 1999), and came into force on 1 April 1999. This code of practice replaces the previous one (Department of Health & Welsh Office, 1993) in providing guidance to professionals undertaking duties under the Mental Health Act 1983. The Mental Health Act uses the term ‘patient’ irrespective of age. However, Section 10 (2) of the Act sets out the right of 16– and 17–year-old people to determine their own admission. Section 10 states:

scholarly journals Rise in the use of section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983 in England and Wales: A viewpoint on Loughran (2018)

2019 ◽  
Vol 60 (2) ◽  
pp. 140-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Cresswell
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Recent Work ◽  
Theoretical Perspective ◽  
Causal Analysis ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Mental Health Act ◽  
The Law

This article provides a critical viewpoint on Loughran’s recent work in Medicine, Science and the Law on the causes of the rise in the police’s use of section 136 (s136) of the Mental Health Act 1983 (Loughran M. Detention under section 136: why is it increasing? Med Sci Law 2018; 58: 268–274). The rate of this rise seems significant: by 2014, it was five times more likely that a person in England would be detained in a hospital under s136 than it was in 2000, and the trend has continued to the present day. This viewpoint considers the significance of the s136 rise from the theoretical perspective of causal analysis.

The impact on clinical practice of the 2015 reforms to the New South Wales Mental Health Act

2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher James Ryan ◽  
Sascha Callaghan
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Clinical Practice ◽  
Persons With Disabilities ◽  
Mental Health Act ◽  
Recovery Movement ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Management Plans ◽  
Decision Making Model ◽  
The Impact

Objectives: The Mental Health Act 2007 (NSW) ( MHA) was recently reformed in light of the recovery movement and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. We analyse the changes and describe the impact that these reforms should have upon clinical practice. Conclusions: The principles of care and treatment added to the MHA place a strong onus on clinicians to monitor patients’ decision-making capacity, institute a supported decision-making model and obtain consent to any treatment proposed. Patients competently refusing treatment should only be subject to involuntary treatment in extraordinary circumstances. Even when patients incompetently refuse treatment, clinicians must make every effort reasonably practicable to tailor management plans to take account of any views and preferences expressed by them or made known via friends, family or advance statements.

R v Westwood (Thomas): diminished responsibility and disposals under the Mental Health Act 1983

2021 ◽  
Vol 72 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sean Mennim
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Mental Health Act ◽  
Court Of Appeal ◽  
Diminished Responsibility

This is a commentary on R v Westwood (Thomas), where the Court of Appeal of England and Wales held that the judge had erred in assessing Westwood’s ‘retained responsibility’ as medium to high under the Sentencing Council Guideline for manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility. Although the sentencing judge concluded that the offending was caused by Westwood’s anger, the Court of Appeal found the psychiatric evidence clearly indicated that the most significant factor was Westwood’s mental illness and that his anger at the time of the offence was a manifestation of his mental illness. Westwood’s responsibility was low, and it was appropriate to impose both a hospital and restriction order.  

scholarly journals Repeated Police Mental Health Act Detentions in England and Wales: Trauma and Recurrent Suicidality

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (23) ◽  
pp. 4786
Author(s):  
Claire Warrington
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Lived Experience ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Police Intervention ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Mental Health Act ◽  
Self Harm ◽  
South East England ◽  
National Police

Most police Mental Health Act (Section 136) detentions in England and Wales relate to suicide prevention. Despite attempts to reduce detention rates, numbers have risen almost continually. Although Section 136 has been subject to much academic and public policy scrutiny, the topic of individuals being detained on multiple occasions remains under-researched and thus poorly understood. A mixed methods study combined six in-depth interviews with people who had experienced numerous suicidal crises and police intervention, with detailed police and mental health records. A national police survey provided wider context. Consultants with lived experience of complex mental health problems jointly analysed interviews. Repeated detention is a nationally recognised issue. In South East England, it almost exclusively relates to suicide or self-harm and accounts for a third of all detentions. Females are detained with the highest frequencies. The qualitative accounts revealed complex histories of unresolved trauma that had catastrophically damaged interviewee’s relational foundations, rendering them disenfranchised from services and consigned to relying on police intervention in repeated suicidal crises. A model is proposed that offers a way to conceptualise the phenomenon of repeated detention, highlighting that long-term solutions to sustain change are imperative, as reactive-only responses can perpetuate crisis cycles.

scholarly journals The PACT advance decision-making template: preparing for Mental Health Act reforms with co-production, focus groups and consultation

2020 ◽  
Vol 71 ◽  
pp. 101563 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucy A. Stephenson ◽  
Tania Gergel ◽  
Alex Ruck Keene ◽  
Larry Rifkin ◽  
Gareth Owen
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Mental Health Act

The frequency of references to decision-making capacity in reports to the NSW Mental Health Review Tribunal did not change after legislative reforms that promoted them

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 171-174
Author(s):  
Tim Foley ◽  
Christopher J Ryan
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Education Campaign ◽  
Mental Health Act ◽  
Decision Making Capacity ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Legislative Reforms ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Health Review

Objective: To assess the impact of a 2015 reform to the Mental Health Act 2007 (NSW) ( MHA) that was interpreted as requiring a reference to decision-making capacity (DMC) in reports to the NSW Mental Health Review Tribunal (MHRT). Method: A sample of reports to the MHRT were audited for references to the MHA’s treatment criteria and DMC in periods before and after the reforms, and the frequency of references between the two periods was compared. Results: The frequency of references to DMC did not change significantly after the reforms. (However, references to the ‘least restriction’ criterion increased markedly between the two periods). Conclusion: Despite legislative reforms and a supporting education campaign promoting the importance of consideration of DMC, references to DMC did not increase after the reforms.

New regulation of the right to a dignified dying in Spain: Repercussions for nursing

2012 ◽  
Vol 19 (5) ◽  
pp. 619-628 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cayetano Fernández-Sola ◽  
José Granero-Molina ◽  
Gabriel Aguilera Manrique ◽  
Adelaida María Castro-Sánchez ◽  
José Manuel Hernández-Padilla ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Patient Empowerment ◽  
Cultural Practice ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Analysis Methodology ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Right ◽  
Discourse Practice

Preserving dignity during the dying process requires reviewing the roles of those involved in the treatment, care methods and decision-making. This article examines the participation and responsibility assigned to nurses regarding decision-making in the final stages of life, as laid out in the Rights to and Guarantee of Dignity for the Individual During the Process of Death Act. This text has been analysed on the levels of socio-cultural practice and discourse practice, using the critical discourse analysis methodology. The results show that, although the law is another result of the social trend of patient empowerment, the responsibility of the nurses is not recognised, and they are left out of the decision-making process in the final stages of life.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document