KCI The Anti_Meth Site

Committing someone to treatment against their will

Sfj	Committing someone to treatment against their will. Occasionally, people on this forum or in the chat room will ask about committing someone to treatment against their will. This is often a family member who needs help. According to Nancy Summers, “Fundamentals of Case Management Practice” The criteria for committing someone against her will are as follows: 1. The person poses a danger to herself or to others, and possibly one or more of the following: 2. The person has a severe mental illness or a mental illness that is currently acute. 3. The person is unable to function in occupational, social, or personal areas. The impairment is severe enough that the person cannot care adequately for herself. 4. The person has refused to sign a voluntary commitment, committing herself for treatment, so that an involuntary commitment is the last resort; or the person is incapable of signing such a commitment or of choosing treatment for herself. 5. The person can be treated once she is committed; that is, there are known treatments and medications that can relieve the acute condition the person is experiencing at present. 6. The commitment adheres to the criteria of the least restrictive treatment. Additionally, each state has specific laws that should be examined and understood, but the six items above are pretty good guidelines in general.
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macy stiller	Re: Committing someone to treatment against their will. *Quote:* The person has a severe mental illness or a mental illness that is currently acute This was very informational to me. And I thank you for that. But can you tell me what this one means? I am not understanding (sorry). Should the person display all of these? One of these or most of these? Thanks for clarifying.
Sfj	Re: Committing someone to treatment against their will. To the best of my knowledge, which is very limited, “Mental Illness” is defined in the DSM IV. That is a book about two inches thick, full of definitions and things of that sort. “Clinical and federal definitions The clinical literature uses two main classification systems to define mental illness. The first system, described in the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), is the one most widely accepted by the clinical community. DSM is a multiaxial classification system that defines a mental disorder as "a clinically significant behavioral or psychological syndrome or pattern that occurs in an individual,...is associated with present distress...or disability...or with a significant increased risk of suffering." The second classification system conceptualizes mental illnesses as "brain disorders" and is based on the hypothesis that disruptions in brain function lead to mental illness. Rather than relying on descriptive criteria such as those in DSM, biopsychiatrists classify mental disorders on the basis of heritability, biochemical markers, and anatomical lesions. The appropriateness of biological psychiatry's classification system continues to be actively debated. Most clinicians agree that the use of purely biological criteria is too limiting, because no single gene or underlying brain lesion has been found for any disorder except Alzheimer's disease” ps.psychiatryonline.org/c.../53/9/1089 There are at least a dozen specific disorders associated with amphetamines. Here is what I found to be relevant concerning our needs at this KCI website. These include, but are not limited to: Amphetamine Intoxication Amphetamine Withdrawal Amphetamine Intoxication Delirium Amphetamine-Induced Psychotic Disorder, With Delusions Amphetamine-Induced Psychotic Disorder, with Hallucinations Amphetamine-Induced Mood Disorder Amphetamine-Induced Anxiety Disorder Amphetamine-Induced Sexual Dysfunction Amphetamine-Induced Sleep Disorder Amphetamine-Induced Disorder Not Otherwise Specified There’s more, Amphetamine Dependence Amphetamine Abuse and even Amphetamine (or Amphetamine-like) – Related disorders. Sfj note: I got this info from pages 223 through page 231 of the DSM IV. My interpretation of this is that Speedfreaks and Tweakers are crazy.
Sfj	Re: Committing someone to treatment against their will. One doesn't have to display all six items listed in the original post of this thread.
forget suzette	Re: Committing someone to treatment against their will. I got a cute mental illness! ....I need to get away from my parents too! hmmm.
macy stiller	Re: Committing someone to treatment against their will. Sfj this really helps me. Thank you so much. Suzette you are crazy! LOL I would want to be away from my parents too.. Love them dearly but they drive me to being crazy.
Penelope	Re: Committing someone to treatment against their will. Criteria for involuntary treatment in California (Welfare and Instutions code 5150) The person is a danger to themselves due to a mental disorder (drug or alcohol use doesn't exclusively apply) The person is a danger to others due to a mental disorder The person is gravely disabled (Unable to provide food, clothing, or shelter) due to a mental disorder