The Mental Health Act 2007 is known as the Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. This one amended two things: the Mental Health Act 1983 and the Mental Health Capacity Act 2005. It applies to everyone who is currently living in both England and Wales. In November 2008, most of the act was implemented.
Details:
- Long title: An Act to amend the Mental Health Act 1983, the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004 and the Mental Capacity Act 2005 in relation to mentally disordered persons; to amend section 40 of the Mental Capacity Act 2005; and for connected purposes.
- Citation: 2007 c 12
- Introduced by: Lord Warner, the Department of Health and the Home Office
- Royal assent: July 19, 2007
It is worth noting that the 1983 Mental Health Act is still counted as the important piece of legislation setting out of the legal framework for compulsory powers in both countries which are England and Wales. The 2007 Act just amended the 1983w Act. Contrary to popular beliefs, it is not replacing it. However, it means the mental health law has become more complicated and hard to understand. To make it easier for you to understand it, check out the summary below.
There are a few things that have not changed. These include sections which the users of the service and the families know the best. These sections include:
- Section 2: This section is used to admit and detain a person in hospital for assessment for up to 28 days.
- Section 3: This section is used to admit and detain a person in hospital for treatment for up to 6 months.
- Section 4: This section is used in an emergency to admit and detain a person in hospital for up to 3 days.
- Section 5: This section is used in an emergency to detain a person already in hospital for up to 3 days by a doctor (S5.2) or 6 hours by a nurse (S5.4).
- Section 7: This section is used to receive a person into Guardianship.
- Sections in Part 3 of the Act and Sections 37 and 41: These sections are used for people who come before a Court.
- Section 117: This section is placing a duty on authorities to provide aftercare to a person who has been detained for treatment.
- Sections 135/136: These sections are about taking a person to a place of safety for assessment
All these sections of the 1983 Act mentioned above are unchanged by the 2007 Act. Everything remains the same and in force. The only thing that should be changed is how they are applied in practice.
Aside from the things that have not changed, there are also several things that have changed, such as:
- The way mental disorder is defined: A new definition of mental disorder is introduced throughout the act and it abolishes the previous categories.
- Every professional who has specific roles within the Act: The role of approved clinician is created, which is a registered healthcare professional, including social worker, nurse, psychologist or occupational therapist, approved by the appropriate authority to act for purposes of the Mental Health Act 1983 (as amended).
- Redefining professional roles: It broadens the range of mental health professionals who are able to be responsible for the treatment of patients without their consent.
- Replacing the role of approved social worker by the role of approved health professional: The one who is fulfilling this role should not be a social worker.
- Criteria for involuntary commitment: A requirement that an individual is not allowed to be detained for treatment unless appropriate treatment is available and remove the treatability test is introduced.
- All the additional rights for patients to displace their Nearest Relative: It is possible for some patients to appoint a civil partner as nearest relative.
- The way the treatment is defined and when it can be given.
- The introduction of Supervised Community Treatment or SCT and Community Treatment Orders or CTOs: The supervised discharged is replaced by this new one with a new power to return the patient to the hospital, where the person may be forcibly medicated, if the medication regime is not being complied with in the community.
- A new right for every patient with an advocate.
- Several changes about how Mental Health Review Tribunals operate: The patient safeguards are improved by taking an order-making power, making it possible for the current time limit to be varied and for automatic referral by hospital managers to the Mental Health Tribunal.
- It is possible for the Electroconvulsive Therapy to not be given to the one who has capacity to refuse consent to it. It may be only possible to the incapacitated one where it does not conflict with any advanced directive, decision of a done or deputy or decision of the Court of Protection.
Not only is it pretty hard to understand, the Mental Health Act 2007, which is the amended version of the Act 1983, is surrounded by controversy. During the development of the Act, there were a few concerns expressed that the changes proposed by the Mental Health Bill were really ruthless. Due to so many pressures, in 2006, the government was forced to abandon their original plans to introduce the Bill outright. Apart from that, they also had to amend the 1983 Act instead. Even though there is concession, the Bill was still defeated a few times in the House of Lords before it received the Royal Assent.
In 2010, a reform of the Mental Health was supported by the Green Party in order to get rid of the transgender people from the Psychiatric Disorder Register. The idea was viewed as discriminatory by many, especially by the transgender people themselves.
Apparently, there was a Code of Practice along with the Mental Health Act 1983. This one gave guidance on how the Act should be applied in both England and Wales. It has been rewritten to reflect the changes in the Mental Health Act 2007. Right now, there is a separate version for Wales.
A bookworm and researcher especially related to law and citizenship education. I spend time every day in front of the internet and the campus library.
