Mental health act, 2001

• Act Number: 25
• Enactment Date: 08 July 2001

Number 25 of 2001
MENTAL HEALTH ACT, 2001
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
PART I
Preliminary and General
Section 1. Short title, collective citation, construction and commencement. 2. Interpretation. 3. “Mental disorder”. 4. Best interests, etc., of person. 5. Regulations. 6. Repeals. 7. Expenses.
PART 2
Involuntary admission of persons to approved centres
8. Criteria for involuntary admission to approved centres. 9. Persons who may apply for involuntary admission. 10. Making of recommendation for involuntary admission. 11. Disclosure of previous application for involuntary admission. 12. Powers of Garda Síochána to take person believed to be suffering from mental disorder into custody. 13. Removal of persons to approved centres. 14. Admission order. 15. Duration and renewal of admission orders. 16. Provision of information for persons admitted to approved centres. 17. Referral of admission order and renewal order to a tribunal. 18. Review by a tribunal of admission orders and renewal orders. 19. Appeal to Circuit Court. 20. Application for transfer of patient. 21. Transfer of patient. 22. Transfer of patient to hospital. 23. Power to prevent voluntary patient from leaving approved centre. 24. Power to detain voluntary patients. 25. Involuntary admission of children. 26. Absence with leave. 27. Absence without leave. 28. Discharge of patients. 29. Voluntary admission to approved centres. 30. Penalties under Part 2.
PART 3
Independent Review of Detention
31. Establishment day. 32. Establishment of Mental Health Commission. 33. Functions of Commission. 34. Conferral of additional functions on Commission. 35. Membership of Commission. 36. Terms of office of members of Commission. 37. Chairperson of Commission. 38. Chief Executive of Commission. 39. Staff of Commission. 40. Superannuation of staff of Commission. 41. Borrowing by Commission. 42. Reports and information to Minister. 43. Membership of either House of Oireachtas or European Parliament. 44. Grants to Commission. 45. Gifts. 46. Seal of Commission. 47. Accounts and audits of Commission. 48. Mental Health Tribunals. 49. Powers of tribunals. 50. Inspector of Mental Health Services. 51. Functions of Inspector. 52. Duties of Inspector when making inspection. 53. Penalty for obstruction of Inspector. 54. Assistant Inspectors of Mental Health Services. 55. Inquiries.
PART 4
Consent to Treatment
56. Definition (Part 4). 57. Treatment not requiring consent. 58. Psycho-surgery. 59. Electro-convulsive therapy. 60. Administration of medicine. 61. Treatment of children in respect of whom an order under section 25 is in force.
PART 5
Approved Centres
62. Definitions (Part 5). 63. Prohibition of unregistered centres. 64. Registration of approved centres. 65. Appeals. 66. Regulations in relation to approved centres. 67. Restriction on admission of patients. 68. Penalties under Part 5.
PART 6
Miscellaneous
69. Bodily restraint and seclusion. 70. Participation in clinical trials. 71. Clinical directors. 72. Transitional provisions. 73. Leave of High Court for certain proceedings. 74. Provisions in relation to offences. 75. Review of operation of Act.
SCHEDULE
Enactments Repealed
Acts Referred to Adoption Acts, 1952 to 1998 Child Care Act, 1991 1991, No. 17 Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Act, 1993 1993, No. 8 Control of Clinical Trials Act, 1987 1987, No. 28 Domestic Violence Act, 1996 1996, No. 1 European Parliament Elections Act, 1997 1997, No. 2 Freedom of Information Act, 1997 1997, No. 13 Health Act, 1970 1970, No. 1 Health (Eastern Regional Health Authority) Act, 1999 1999, No. 13 Health (Mental Services) Act, 1981 1981, No. 17 Mental Treatment Act, 1945 1945, No. 19 Mental Treatment Act, 1953 1953, No. 35 Mental Treatment Act, 1961 1961, No. 7 Mental Treatment (Detention in Approved Institutions) Act, 1961 1961, No. 4 Nurses Act, 1985 1985, No. 18 Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act, 1851 1851, c. 93
Number 25 of 2001
MENTAL HEALTH ACT, 2001
AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE INVOLUNTARY ADMISSION TO APPROVED CENTRES OF PERSONS SUFFERING FROM MENTAL DISORDERS, TO PROVIDE FOR THE INDEPENDENT REVIEW OF THE INVOLUNTARY ADMISSION OF SUCH PERSONS AND, FOR THOSE PURPOSES, TO PROVIDE FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A MENTAL HEALTH COMMISSION AND THE APPOINTMENT OF MENTAL HEALTH COMMISSION TRIBUNALS AND AN INSPECTOR OF MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES, TO REPEAL IN PART THE MENTAL TREATMENT ACT, 1945, AND TO PROVIDE FOR RELATED MATTERS. [8th July, 2001]
BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:
PART 1 Preliminary and General
	Short title, collective citation, construction and commencement.	1.—(1) This Act may be cited as the Mental Health Act, 2001.
	(2) The Mental Treatment Act, 1945 , the Mental Treatment Act, 1961 , and this Act may be cited together as the Mental Health Acts, 1945 to 2001, and shall be construed together as one.
	(3) This Act shall come into operation on such day or days as, by order or orders made by the Minister under this section, may be fixed therefor either generally or with reference to any particular purpose or provision, and different days may be so fixed for different purposes and different provisions.
	Interpretation.	2.—(1) In this Act, save where the context otherwise requires—
	“Act of 1945” means the Mental Treatment Act, 1945 ;
	“admission order” shall be construed in accordance with section 14 ;
	“application” means an application for a recommendation that a person be involuntarily admitted to an approved centre and “applicant” shall be construed accordingly;
	“approved centre” shall be construed in accordance with section 63 ;
	“child” means a person under the age of 18 years other than a person who is or has been married;
	“clinical director” means a person appointed under section 71 ;
	“Commission” means the Mental Health Commission established under section 32 ;
	“consultant psychiatrist” means a consultant psychiatrist who is employed by a health board or by an approved centre or a person whose name is entered on the division of psychiatry or the division of child and adolescent psychiatry of the Register of Medical Specialists maintained by the Medical Council in Ireland;
	“establishment day” means the day appointed by the Minister under section 31 ;
	“examination”, in relation to a recommendation, an admission order or a renewal order, means a personal examination carried out by a registered medical practitioner or a consultant psychiatrist of the process and content of thought, the mood and the behaviour of the person concerned;
	“functional area”, in relation to a health board, means the functional area of the board as defined in the Health Boards Regulations, 1970 ( S.I. No. 170 of 1970 ) and in relation to the Eastern Regional Health Authority, its functional area as defined in section 7 of the Health (Eastern Regional Health Authority) Act, 1999 ;
	“functions” includes powers and duties and references to the performance of functions include, with respect to powers and duties, references to the exercise of the powers and the carrying out of the duties;
	“give” includes send, whether by post or electronic or other means, and cognate words shall be construed accordingly;
	“health board” means a health board established under the Health Act, 1970 , and the Eastern Regional Health Authority;
	“Inspector” shall be construed in accordance with section 50 ;
	“legal representative” means a barrister or a solicitor;
	“mental health services” means services which provide care and treatment to persons suffering from a mental illness or a mental disorder under the clinical direction of a consultant psychiatrist;
	“mental illness” has the meaning assigned to it by section 3 ;
	“Minister” means the Minister for Health and Children;
	“parents” includes a surviving parent and, in the case of a child who has been adopted under the Adoption Acts, 1952 to 1998, or, where the child has been adopted outside the State, whose adoption is recognised by virtue of the law for the time being in force in the State, means the adopter or adopters or the surviving adopter;
	“patient” shall be construed in accordance with section 14 ;
	“prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made by the Minister;
	“recommendation” shall be construed in accordance with section 10 ;
	“registered nurse” means a person whose name is entered in the register of nurses maintained by An Board Altranais under section 27 of the Nurses Act, 1985 ;
	“registered medical practitioner” means a person whose name is entered in the General Register of Medical Practitioners;
	“registered proprietor” has the meaning assigned to it by section 62 ;
	“relative”, in relation to a person, means a parent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, niece, nephew or child of the person or of the spouse of the person whether of the whole blood, of the half blood or by affinity;
	“renewal order” shall be construed in accordance with ...