Mental Capacity Act 2005: Informed Consent In Health Care

The Mental Capacity Act is legislation which increases the legal rights of the person with dementia to be involved in decisions about their own health and care. The Act also means that when somebody no longer has the mental capacity to be involved in decision making themselves, their carer will have the right to be consulted about decisions being made on behalf of the person with

Moreover, through the Mental Capacity Act (2005), it provides a legal framework for making decisions on behalf of the individual who lack the capacity to make decisions for themselves as long as it does not restrict the rights and freedom of action.

 Mental Capacity Act 2005 – The MCA applies to England and Wales. The primary purpose of the MCA is to promote and safeguard decision-making within a legal framework. It does this in two ways: * By empowering people to make decisions for themselves wherever possible and by protecting people who lack capacity by providing a flexible framework that places individuals at the heart of the decision making process * By allowing people to plan ahead for a time in the future when they might lack the capacity for any number of reasons

The NSW Mental Health Act 2007 lays down the foundation in the proper provision and facilitation of care and treatment to persons with mental health disorders and promote their recovery while protecting the rights of these persons. One of the provisions of the Act uplifting this objective is in the involvement of family and nominated carers of patients. As defined by the Act, designated carers may represent from the person’s guardians; the parent

In their article, “The Concept of Informed Consent,” Faden and Beauchamp give two varying definitions of informed consent, namely sense one and sense two. Sense one is defined as autonomous authorization, meaning that the patient or subject agrees and then gives authority to move forward with a proposal (Vaughn 191). The authors give four conditions that have to be met for informed consent to be recognized: the patient has to understand the information presented to her, there should be no manipulation or coercion, and she has to intentionally give her authorization (Vaughn 191). Faden and Beauchamp also note that the fourth condition, where the patient gives her authorization, is pivotal in this sense since it differentiates autonomous authorization

The main aspects of this act are that a person must be assumed to have capacity unless it is established that he lacks capacity, the person is not to be treated as unable to make a decision unless all practicable steps to help him to do so have been taken without success, a person is not to be treated as unable to make a decision simply because he makes an unwise decision, an act done or decision made, under this Act for or on behalf of a person who lacks capacity must be done, or made, in his best interests and before the act is done, or the decision is made, regard must be had to whether the purpose for which it is needed can be as effectively achieved in a way that is less restrictive of the person's

Mental Capacity Act: The Mental Capacity Act 2005 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom applying to England and Wales. Its primary purpose is to provide a legal framework for acting and making decisions on behalf of adults who lack the capacity to make particular decisions for themselves.

The court must listen to the evidence received by two doctors and their evidence must satisfy the court that the offender is suffering from a mental illness as described under the definition above and that their detention is appropriate for medical treatment to take place. They must also assert the court that appropriate medical treatment is available for the offender and when considering to imposing the above order the courts must also take into consideration the offenders history and character; any other relevant circumstances and any other alternative methods that could be imposed. All other avenues must also be explored before the court makes its final decision. the evidence given by the doctors must ascertain the court that hospitalisation is the most beneficial course of action to take in this offenders case (MHLO, 2010)

“A decision made by a person (‘P’) after he has reached 18 and when he has capacity to do so, that if – (a) at a later time and in such circumstances as he may specify, a specified treatment is proposed to be carried out or continued by a person providing health care for him, and (b) at that time he lacks capacity to consent to the carrying out or continuation of the treatment, the specified treatment is not to be carried out or

The author will also discuss the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (2005) and the Mental Health Act (1983) and how it protect an adult who is vulnerable and lacks capacity. Likewise, the author will discuss ranges of nursing interventions, person-centred care, and ethical dilemmas.

This act is made to help protect those who are unable to make decisions for them. This could be due to a mental health condition, a learning difficulty or a brain injury. The purpose of this act is to allow adults to make as many decisions for them as possible. For example, somebody with dementia might make a decision about whether they want future medical treatment or not. This act links to people who are suffering with dementia as within the later stages of dementia they are unable to make decisions for themselves and consequently, the Mental Capacity Act ensures that the individual has somebody to make the decisions for them.

My chosen reflection piece is on ageism, see appendix one. I will provide evidence reflecting the links between diabetes and depression, which will form my chosen seminar topic, see appendix two. I will then critically analyze the mental capacity Act (2005) and relate it to my specific scenario, see appendix three. I will explore how nurses the Act within nursing practice, decision- making, and how we access a person’s capacity to make specific decisions. I will explore any ethical issues that may arise following the principles of Mental Capacity Act (2005).

Informed consent is the basis for all legal and moral aspects of a patient’s autonomy. Implied consent is when you and your physician interact in which the consent is assumed, such as in a physical exam by your doctor. Written consent is a more extensive form in which it mostly applies when there is testing or experiments involved over a period of time. The long process is making sure the patient properly understands the risk and benefits that could possible happen during and after the treatment. As a physician, he must respect the patient’s autonomy. For a patient to be an autonomous agent, he must have legitimate moral values. The patient has all the rights to his medical health and conditions that arise. When considering informed

The term “consent capacity” describes an adult’s ability to understand information relevant to making an informed, voluntary decision. A wide variety of diseases, disorders, conditions, and injuries can affect a person’s ability to understand such information.

Consent can be quite tricky, a legal minefield for healthcare teams, this is due to the patients who will give or refuse to give private information about themselves who is legally competent but