The Mental Capacity Act in practice.
There are many elements of daily life that we don’t learn about until we reach certain stages of our lives or have greater levels of independence in our everyday lives. For example, on first moving away from a parents or caregivers home, a whole new world of experiences and responsibilities will suddenly occur. This can be anything from how to change a lightbulb or put up a shelf, to how to organise a loan or buy a car.
The way professionals document mental capacity tests can vary greatly across the health and care sectors. In some cases, professionals are not yet using the updated assessment format of Functional and then Diagnostic. More worrying still is that in some cases it’s not just the documentation format that varies, but the quality of the content that is recorded.
In this blog, we examine two example assessments, using the case of Dylan to show the impact documentation can have on the outcomes of an assessment.
Each of us have a Right to Liberty, as outlined in the Human Rights Act (article 5). However, in certain circumstances, these Rights can be significantly reduced and infringed upon. Typically, this would be in a healthcare setting, where certain liberties may be restricted in order to protect the individual, or others, from harm.
Mental Capacity case studies help us apply knowledge in action. They can help us visualise scenarios and understand processes, as well as challenges, before considering the who, what, when, where and how.
In today’s blog, we start a series of case studies that explore particular aspects of the Mental Capacity Act within everyday practice. To help us with this, we will draw on familiar characters from the worlds of TV, film and literature that give an array of contexts and presentations.
A key focus of the Mental Capacity Act (Northern Ireland) is the Deprivation of Liberty, also known as DoL. While there are some similarities with the MCA for England and Wales, there are some key differences in how the process works in Northern Ireland. In particular, there are two separate Codes of Practice that professionals must adhere to. The process for conducting an assessment is also slightly different.
There are a number of details that need to be established before a mental capacity assessment is carried out. Without this information, the test may not be valid, and the outcome may be challenged at a later date.
The Mental Capacity Act (Northern Ireland) is a pivotal piece of legislation designed to promote rights and safeguard vulnerable people who are not able to make decisions for themselves. It also includes rules around the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS).
Following a number of well-documented delays, it has been announced that the implementation of Liberty Protection Safeguards (LPS) will be further delayed beyond the life of this Parliament, meaning we are unlikely to see LPS introduced until at least 2025.
In the final part of our series on the Adults with Incapacity Act for Scotland (AWI), we look at important issues relating to power of attorney (PoA), guardianship, intervention orders and monitoring bodies.
A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is a trusted person (or persons) assigned to make decisions on behalf of someone who lacks capacity to make decisions for themselves. Crucially, LPAs are assigned by an individual while they still have capacity, as a means of preserving their wishes should they become unable to make decisions for themselves at some point in the future.