Legal, medical and epidemiological characteristics of persons exempt from criminal liability in the National Prison Institute of Peru, 2014-2019

Objectives: To describe and correlate the epidemiological, clinical and legal characteristics of persons exempt from criminal liability registered in the National Prison Institute of Peru in the period 2014-2019. Material and method: Retrospective, cross-sectional descriptive study with correlational components and secondary sources. The sample consisted of all the persons exempt from criminal liability who formed part of the prison population of Peru during the study period. A validated data collection sheet was used. Data were analyzed through descriptive statistics using SPSS v24 software. For inferential analysis, a simple binary logistic regression was carried out. Results: A total of 179 persons exempt from criminal liability were identified in 36 Peruvian prisons; 94.4% were males, with an average age of 35 years; 6.1% were undocumented. 67.0% had a diagnosis of the schizophrenia spectrum. The main crimes were against freedom (39.1%) and against life, body and health (36.8%). In 74.6% of cases, the duration of involuntary commitment was more than five years; 11.5% remained in prison after the date of release. In 18.4%, involuntary commitment was established by the Peruvian National Prison Institute. Associations between variables such as diagnosis, type and severity of the crime were found. Discussion: Aspects that violate national and international regulations (excessive length of involuntary commitment, in unsuitable locations, unjustified imprisonment, etc.) were identified, affecting the fundamental human rights of persons exempt from criminal liability in prison.

Governance of Protecting Patients

AimsInvoluntary commitment is a legal process through which an individual with symptoms of severe mental illness is court-ordered into inpatient or outpatient treatment. These criteria vary between nations. The goal of this presentation is to compare the governance of protecting patients among different parts of the world.BackgroundUnderstanding the relevance of the judicial committeemen in psychiatry is an essential part of good psychiatric practice. A majority of patients who need inpatient psychiatric treatment fall into one of the following categories: dangerous to self, dangerous to others, or gravely disabled.In the United States, the Parens Patriate doctrine has had great application in the treatment of mentally ill persons, children, and other individuals who are legally incompetent to manage their affairs. The states, which act as parens patriae, can make decisions regarding mental health treatment. State law governs involuntary commitment, and procedures may vary among states.MethodOne of the essential duties of St. Tammany Parish Coroner Office, Louisiana, USA is Mental Health Service, From January 2017 to October 2019, 887 Order of Protective Custody (OPC), 17,838 Physician Emergency Certificates (PEC), and 13096 Coroner Emergency Certificates (CEC) were issued. These certificates allow legal authority to transport a patient to the nearest ER for assessment by physician and mental health providers.ResultPatients with active Physician Certificate are examined by a coroner according to patient's mental history and clinical presentation. Coroner Certificate helps the treatment facilty detail the patient for diagnosis and treatment for fifteen days.ConclusionSt. Tammany Parish Coroner Office is fulfilling its responsibility to provide proper mental health to psychiatric patients. It is necessary for each country/state/parish to have legal structure and provide proper care who are dangerous to self or others, or gravely disabled. The procedures of OPC, PEC, and CEC will be presented.

Ακούσια εισαγωγή σε ψυχιατρική μονάδα: Από το πνεύμα του νόμου στην καθημερινότητα της εφαρμογής του

The present study investigates the divergence between the law 2071/92 regarding involuntary commitment of persons with mental disorders to a psychiatric ward and its practical implementation, through information drawn from psychiatrists, attorneys and police officers, who are directly involved in the process, as well as from involuntarily committedpersons. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with four participants from each professional group, and four persons with experience of involuntary commitment. The material wassystematically analysed and organised in categories according to the principles of Grounded Theory. The analysis reveals an adequate picture of the process of involuntary commitment, the aspects of the law thatare implemented and correspondingly those which are not implemented, the difficulties in the implementation of the law, as well as broader issues concerning involuntary commitment. Amongst the central issues highlighted in this study are the distinctiveness of the participants’ roles and the lack of collaboration between them, the importance of dangerousness, which coalesces all the professional participants and overshadows the aim of care, and finally the lack of a prescribed framework for the implementation of the law, which results in significant differences in its implementation depending on the personal stance and knowledge of each professional involved.