A Clinician's Brief Guide to the Mental Health Act

Book excerpt: A 'how to' book guiding clinicians through the mental health legislation that they need to understand and use in their daily practice, covering the Mental Health Act 1983 and subsequent amendments. This revised and updated edition incorporates new acts, such as the Policing and Crime Act 2017 and Mental Capacity (Amendment) Act 2019. It also covers the findings and implications from Professor Sir Simon Wessely's 2018 review of the Mental Health Act in a new chapter. Written by two leading psychiatrists with many years of experience in using the mental health legislation and in running mental health law courses, this book outlines how changes to statutes and case law have a direct bearing on day-to-day psychiatric practice and why it is important that clinicians of all disciplines have access to and understand the legislation. This is the go-to guide for all clinicians, doctors and nurses working in mental health services.