March 2008
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March 2008
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Involuntary hospitalization Inside a psychiatric/behavioral health facility |
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Can anyone make me go into the hospital if I don't want to go? The National Association of Psychiatric Health Systems reports that more than 80 percent of adults treated in its members' hospitals are admitted voluntarily. In many states, people so disabled by their illnesses that they don't fully recognize the need for 24-hour inpatient care and who refuse hospital treatment may be involuntarily admitted to the hospital, but only with the knowledge of the court system and following an examination by a physician. Commitment procedures vary from state to state. Most states allow a physician to prescribe that a person be admitted involuntarily to a hospital for a brief evaluation period, usually three-days. During the evaluation period, a team of psychiatrists and mental health professionals can learn whether the person's illness requires longer hospital care or can be managed effectively with less intensive treatment, such as partial hospitalization. |
If the evaluation team thinks a patient requires inpatient care past the three-day period, it can request longer admission--a request that, it should be emphasized, is subject to a hearing. At this hearing, the patient or his or her representative must be present. No decisions regarding a patient's hospitalization and subsequent treatment can be made without the presence of the patient or this representative. If involuntary admission is recommended, the court can issue an order for only a specific period of time. At the end of that period, the question of hospitalization must again go to a court hearing. Involuntary treatment is sometimes necessary, but is used only in unusual circumstances and is always subject to a review which protects the civil liberties of patients. Source: American Psychiatric Association Back to
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