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My family put me in a mental hospital against my will
What usually matters in this situation, and the papers to keep ready before you meet an advocate or free legal aid (call 15100).
Your situation
- What is the problem? Admitted or kept in a hospital or rehab against my will
- Who is asking? I am the person
Where you stand
- In your favour Anyone with a mental illness is entitled to free legal services.
Do these now
- Application to the Mental Health Review Board or State Mental Health Authority, with receipt
The Board can order discharge and stop illegal treatment. Where: State Mental Health Authority; district court complex. Legal aid can help: 15100.
Papers to gather
- Name and address of the hospital or centre, and the date of admission
Needed for any complaint or application. Where: Family; admission papers. - Admission form — whether it says independent or supported admission — and any consent signed
Shows whether the legal conditions were followed. Where: Ask the hospital for a copy; patients are entitled to information. - A short dated note of what happened, who decided, and what treatment was given
The Review Board acts on clear facts. Where: Write it yourself.
What the law says
The Mental Healthcare Act, 2017 gives every person the right to access mental healthcare from government-funded services (s.18), to live with dignity and to be protected from cruel or degrading treatment (s.20), and to free legal services (s.27). Insurers must provide medical insurance for mental illness on the same basis as physical illness (s.21(4)). An adult may seek admission on their own (independent admission, s.86) and can ask to be discharged. Admission without the person’s consent (supported admission) needs specific conditions and lasts up to 30 days (s.89); longer stays need the Mental Health Review Board’s approval (s.90), and the Board hears appeals. Chaining, electroconvulsive therapy without anaesthesia and muscle relaxants, ECT for minors and sterilisation as treatment are banned (s.95). A person can make an advance directive and name a nominated representative. Private “rehab” or de-addiction centres must also follow the law.
General information, not legal advice.
Saboot will also ask
- Where is the person held?
- How long has the person been kept there?
Similar situations
- Locked in a rehab or de-addiction centre and not allowed to leave
- A relative is chained or beaten at a faith healer or centre
- Hospital gave shock treatment without consent
- Insurance rejected my claim for depression or psychiatric treatment
- Government hospital refused mental health treatment
- Fired or forced out of college because of a mental illness
- Kept in a mental hospital for months with no review
Sources
- Mental Healthcare Act, 2017 (sections 18, 20, 21, 27, 86, 89, 90, 95)
- NALSA — free legal aid
The full guide: Mental health — admitted to a hospital against my will, mistreated, or insurance refused for mental illness · All situations