Mental Health Act 2007

• Introduction of Supervised Community Treatment, including Community Treatment Orders. This new power replaces supervised discharge with a power to return the patient to hospital, where the person may be forcibly medicated, if the medication regime is not being complied with in the community.
• Redefining professional roles: broadening the range of mental health professionals who can be responsible for the treatment of patients without their consent.
• Creating the role of approved clinician, which is a registered healthcare professional approved by the appropriate authority to act for purposes of the Mental Health Act 1983.
• Replacing the role of approved social worker by the role of approved mental health professional; the person fulfilling this role need not be a social worker.
• Nearest relative: making it possible for some patients to appoint a civil partner as nearest relative.
• Definition of mental disorder: introduce a new definition of mental disorder throughout the Act, abolishing previous categories
• Criteria for Involuntary commitment: introduce a requirement that someone cannot be detained for treatment unless appropriate treatment is available and remove the treatability test.
• Mental Health Review Tribunal : improve patient safeguards by taking an order-making power which will allow the current time limit to be varied and for automatic referral by hospital managers to the MHRT.
• Introduction of independent mental health advocates for 'qualifying patients'.
• Electroconvulsive Therapy may not be given to a patient who has capacity to refuse consent to it, and may only be given to an incapacitated patient where it does not conflict with any advance directive, decision of a donee or deputy or decision of the Court of Protection.

  Controversy