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Treatment in the community in the absence of consent

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

J. A. T. Dyer
J. A. T. Dyer*
Affiliation:
Social Community and Rehabilitation Section, Royal College of Psychiatrists and Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland, Argyle House, Floor K, Lady Lawson Street, Edinburgh EH3 9SH
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Abstract

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Because of the nature of some mental illness, care and compulsion in psychiatry are not always antithetical. However, it is no longer acceptable to link compulsory treatment almost exclusively to compulsory hospitalisation. Treatment should occur in the least restrictive environment possible. This paper looks at experience of extended leave of absence in Scotland, and in England and Wales before 1986, at the recent evidence for an increased risk of violence and homicide in schizophrenia and the danger of a backlash against community care if it is perceived as unsafe, and makes suggestions in relation to research and to provision for treatment in the community in the absence of consent.

Type
Original Papers
Information
Psychiatric Bulletin , Volume 22 , Issue 2 , February 1998 , pp. 73 - 76
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © 1998 The Royal College of Psychiatrists

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