A tale of two Acts: the Mental Health Act, the Mental Capacity Act, and their interface

 In January the Department of Health and Social Care published its response to the Independent Review of the Mental Health Act and a consultation on its proposed changes. As you might expect with legislation that has been around since 1983 – the reforms extend to many areas of care.

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Reforming The Mental Health Act

 An independent review of the Mental Health Act 1983 (MHA), published in 2017 , looked at how it’s used and made suggestions for improvement. It concluded that the MHA does not always work as well as it should for patients, their families and their carers. This white paper proposes a range of changes, based on four principles that have been developed with people with lived experience of the MHA. They are: choice and autonomy; least restriction; therapeutic benefit; and the person as an individual. The consultation on these proposals closes on 21 April 2021.

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Monitoring the Mental Health Act report

This annual report on the use of the Mental Health Act (MHA) looks at how providers are caring for patients, and whether patient’s rights are being protected. Click here for link to report

Vulnerable adults let down on Mental Capacity Act

Vulnerable adults are too often being let down by social workers and care providers failing to follow the Mental Capacity Act properly, a report has warned.

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman’s review found one in five social care complaints made to the service last year concerned mental capacity or deprivation of liberty cases. More than two-thirds of these complaints were upheld, compared to 53% of all complaints across social care.

Risks vs rights: how social workers handle one of the toughest jobs in mental health

One of the most important roles in our mental health system is also one of the least known about. Every day, approved mental health professionals (AMHPs) have to assess whether a person’s mental health crisis has become so severe that they need to be detained for their own safety, or that of others, under the Mental Health Act.

This complex and finely balanced judgment call is often made in difficult circumstances. It demands AMHPs weigh up the risks against a person’s human rights. Detaining a person against their will takes away their liberty. But if they are refusing care, it could be the only way to get much-needed, potentially life-saving, support.

Read more HERE

Mental Health Alliance report outlines Mental Health Act concerns

The Mental Health Alliance, a coalition of 65 organisations including the Mental Health Network, has published a new report on the Mental Health Act highlighting concerns that the Act overlooks the dignity and human rights of people with mental illness.

The report, A Mental Health Act fit for tomorrow, led by Rethink Mental Illness on behalf of the Alliance, includes the views of over 8000 people who either use mental health services or work in the field as carers and professionals.

CCGs face mounting 'aftercare' costs for mental health patients

Clinical commissioning groups are facing mounting costs for the care of people after they have been detained under the Mental Health Act, but many are not recording how many patients they have, HSJ can reveal.

An HSJ investigation has found the average cost per CCG of providing “aftercare” for mental health patients following their discharge has increased by 50 per cent since 2013-14, from £1.5m a year to £2.3m in 2016-17.

Your questions answered on mental health aftercare

Legal trainer Belinda Schwehr answers practitioners' questions about the law on mental health aftercare and how it interacts with the Care Act

Latest figures on detentions under the Mental Health Act published by NHS Digital

New statistics have been published by NHS Digital today on the number of detentions under the Mental Health Act in England throughout 2015/16.

*NHS Digital must be quoted as the source of these figures

*Regional data available to police force and hospital trust level