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Chance of success is irrelevant

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Ahmed S. Huda*
Affiliation:
Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust, Early Intervention Team, 133 Astley Street, Dukinfield SK16 4PU, email: ahmed.huda@penninecare.nhs.uk
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Abstract

Type
The columns
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists, 2009

At the conclusion of their article, (Reference Singh and MoncrieffSingh & Moncrieff, 2009) the authors state that patients should be told of the chances of an appeal being successful (about 12%). This assertion is fraught with difficulty. If this information is handled badly, the patient may feel that the doctor is trying to intimidate them out of appealing. It is like saying, ‘You can appeal, if you want old boy, but your chances are only one in eight.’ Many patients already labour under the misapprehension that if they appeal, they will only make things worse for themselves and this fear will only increase if a doctor glibly tells them of the low odds of success. I always try to emphasise to patients that they should appeal, as it is their right and it will not affect their care. I would recommend that this type of information would best be provided by the patient's solicitor as part of their discussions with the client, as to their instructions. The solicitor will appear a more neutral person to impart this information than the doctor who has them compulsorily detained. Appealing for release from detention is the patient's right, not a treatment decision such as which medication or therapy to advise. As such, discussions about its success rate, if at all, should be with the patient's solicitor.

References

Singh, D. K. & Moncrieff, J. (2009) Trends in mental health review tribunal and hospital managers' hearings in north-east London 1997–2007. Psychiatric Bulletin, 33, 1517.Google Scholar
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