Mental Health Act

an Act of Parliament to govern the treatment of people with a mental disorder, which is defined as covering mental illness, personality disorder, and learning disability. For England and Wales the current legislation is the Mental Health Act 1983, which provides for the voluntary and compulsory treatment of the mentally disordered. The purposes of involuntary admission are both to act in patients' best interests, providing treatment for them when they have lost insight into their illness, and to manage the risk that may arise from a mental disorder to the patients themselves or to others. Several amendments have been made to this Act since 1983 and more are planned to come into force later in this decade. Among those currently being considered is the introduction of Community Treatment Orders, which would provide for the involuntary treatment of patients in their own homes but would not include administration of medication. For Scotland the current legislation is the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003, which came into effect in April 2005.