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If you are detained under the Mental Health Act you may be lawfully held in hospital against your will. If you are held under Sections 4, 5, 35, 135 or 136, or subject to Guardianship or conditional discharge, you remain free to accept or refuse any treatment you may be offered. If you are detained under sections 2, 3, 36, 37, 38, 47 or 48, your consent should always be sought, but if you do not consent, treatment may be given anyway. |
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If you are held under Section 3, you have more say in your treatment after three months. You cannot be given medication beyond three months without your consent, for example, unless a second opinion doctor says it is necessary. You can always, however, be given treatment against your wishes if it is deemed necessary to save your life or if you are considered to be a serious threat to other people. |
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New rules apply to electro-convulsive therapy (ECT) under the 2007 Act. Section 58A concerns ECT and any medication administered as part of ECT treatment. It applies to all detained patients, and patients under 18 whether they are detained or not. If you are considered to understand the proposed treatment and have the capacity to consent, if you refuse ECT then it cannot be administered against your wishes, and no patient under 18 may be given the treatment unless it is authorised by a second opinion doctor. ECT can be given without your consent only if an independent psychiatrist (appointed by the Care Quality Commission) interviews you and considers it necessary. If, however, you have made an Advanced Decision when well saying that you do not wish to receive ECT, and the hospital knows about this, then treatment cannot be given. |
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Note: if you are an informal patient, it is possible to find yourself detained in hospital under Section 5 of the Act when you try to leave - you then become a formal patient. For more information see below under The Mental Health Act - Some Sections. |
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