Lords consider mental health laws
Concerned (I am) | 10.01.2007 16:48 | Health | Repression
He said: "People should retain as much autonomy as possible. People may have decision-making ability over many of the areas where decisions need to be made.
The changes have been criticised by doctors and campaigners
The House of Lords is carrying out a detailed consideration of proposals to introduce new mental health laws.
The new government bill would allow the enforced detention of people who are mentally ill, even if they have not committed any crime.
Protestors watch out Big Brother will section YOU!
it only takes two signitures I think..
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Concerned (I am)
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16.01.2007 07:56
Mental health shakedown
The Queen's Speech announced the introduction of a Bill to provide a better framework for treating people with mental disorders. The government are intent on reviving the previously axed and heavily criticised Mental Health Bill
The current Mental Health Act (1983) enables specified professionals to treat people without their consent. The Government now wants to make changes to extend and simplify this process.
One ex-client of the mental health service interviewed by Freedom noted: “The Bill seems to be motivated and promoted by a prejudice that connects mental illness with violence and the need to protect the public. In fact 95% of all killings have no connection to people with mental illnesses. They are mostly the result of drugs and alcohol, but plans have not been proposed to affect the liberty of Friday night boozers.”
Currently compulsory treatment can only occur in hospital. The government wants to extend this into the community. So called 'psychiatric ASBOs' will be enforced, the conditions of which may include residency, appointments, medication and 'conduct.' These conditions would not be subject to independent review.
This proposal to restrict the movement and activities of patients in the community has been condemned by mental health workers. Rethink's campaign manager, Jane Harris, said that curfews and banning visits to pubs were completely unworkable. Tony Zigmond, of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, saw the enforcement or monitoring of the conditions being the main problem. He said, 'It's a monitoring exercise that doctors and nurses should not be doing.'
But the main problem is the lack of independent review.
The 1983 Act states that compulsory treatment must help a patient's condition, or prevent it getting worse, this is the treatability clause. The Government wishes to change this to allow treatment that is ‘appropriate’ and ‘available’ i.e. remove treatability as a criterion. The judgement of what is ‘appropriate’ is a subjective one rather than objective, and could include measures to control rather than cure. People with untreatable personality disorders could therefore be compulsorily detained whether they've committed a criminal act or not.
Tony Calland, chairman of the British Medical Association's medical ethics committee said, 'Mental health legislation cannot be used to detain people whom the authorities simply want locked away.'
At the moment, two doctors and a social worker are required to make the decision to treat someone without their consent. The government's intention is to empower a wider range of healthcare professionals to take these decisions.
Treatment without consent can now only be given if a person has a ‘mental disorder’. Again the government wants to expand the definition of mental disorder. This, if used widely, could conceivably include immoral conduct, promiscuity, anti-social or eccentric behaviour and different political or cultural beliefs.
Sources of Information: rethink.org, Dept. of Health: dh.gov.uk
Rob Ray
Homepage:
http://freedom.libcom.org.uk/