The Mental Capacity Act in practice.
There are several terms that are used to describe the process of determining a person’s mental capacity. Is it a Mental Capacity Test, or a Mental Capacity Assessment? In this blog, we explore some of the language around the Mental Capacity Act (2005) and how it applies in practice.
Read More »Mental Capacity Test or Assessment – what is the difference?
As the size of our retired population grows, and our social norms change, we are seeing an increasing demand for care and nursing homes to support those who are not able to have their needs met within the community.
These older adults – indeed many younger adults as well – may have come to these placements through shared decision-making, or through Best Interest decisions made on their behalf. Others may be in care settings as a part of discharge-to-assess models, respite, or as a step-down placement for rehabilitation prior to returning home.
Read More »Protecting Human Rights in care settings
An RPR is a vital role under the Mental Capacity Act (2005), supporting an individual’s inclusion and rights around their Deprivation of Liberties (DoLS). This role is often filled by an unpaid family-member, friend or partner. However, if a family-member, friend, or partner cannot be identified, the supervisory body is required to refer for independent advocacy to complete this role as a paid (professional) RPR.
Read More »Support for RPRs
The Mental Capacity Act is designed to empower a person’s voice, protect their rights and provide safeguarding measures, alongside direction of practice, if a person is determined to lack capacity for a particular decision at a certain time. In this blog, we explore the role of the Mental Capacity Act around future decisions relating to healthcare, finance and assigning an LPA.
Read More »Mental Capacity and future decisions
When does care become a deprivation for a young person under 18 years of age? When is care ‘necessary’ and how do we define what counts as ‘necessary’? Are a young person’s right so different from that of an adult? These are all questions that some of us wrestle with on an almost daily basis – and yet at the same time, it is evident that in some cases, these questions are not given the attention that they deserve.
Read More »Deprivation of liberties and the under 18s
This year has seen several quite significant updates in healthcare legislation, with several important changes for the way we treat and care for patients. While these are not all related to the Mental Capacity Act directly, it’s important that we take note of the changes and how they affect our day-to-day work.
Read More »Key legislation updates (so far) in 2022
Values are essential to help us establish a moral outlook and focus within our everyday practices – without which we lose our sense of identity and purpose.
Here at Mental Capacity Ltd, we have identified three core values to guide us in our mission: Promote, Partner and Protect.
Read More »Our values: Promote, Partner, Protect
In our last blog, we outlined some of the key differences between Next of Kin (NOK) and Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA). In this follow-up blog, we will explore a few recent examples of misuse of LPA, and lessons we can learn going forward.
Read More »Examples of the misuse of Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA)According to UK consumer rights organisation Which?, the Power of Attorney system is in ‘desperate need of improvement’. This is because many people don’t understand how the system works, and it can also be difficult to put vital Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) arrangements in place.
Read More »Next of Kin vs Lasting Power of Attorney
In our last blog, we considered the complex case of ‘P’ – an individual being assessed for mental capacity with respect to their change in accommodation, as well as their wish to take responsibility for managing their inheritance.
The case study highlighted several major issues in the way the original mental capacity assessment had been completed, including concerns around the lack of support to help P communicate autonomously, and the lack of documentation around P’s condition and capacity.
Read More »Preparing questions for a complex Mental Capacity Assessment