Mental Health Act 1959

Duration of authority for detention or guardianship and discharge of patients

43 Duration of authority

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this Part of this Act, a patient admitted to hospital in pursuance of an application for admission for treatment, and a patient placed under guardianship in pursuance of a guardianship application, may be detained in a hospital or kept under guardianship for a period not exceeding one year beginning with the day on which he was so admitted, or the day on which the guardianship application was accepted, as the case may be, but shall not be so detained or kept for any longer period unless the authority for his detention or guardianship is renewed under the following provisions of this section.

(2) Authority for the detention or guardianship of a patient may, unless the patient has previously been discharged, be renewed under this section—

(a) from the expiration of the period referred to in subsection (1) of this section, for a further period of one year;

(b) from the expiration of any period of renewal under paragraph (a) of this subsection, for a further period of two years,

and so on for periods of two years at a time.

(3) Within the period of two months ending on the day on which a patient who is liable to be detained in pursuance of an application for admission for treatment would cease under this section to be so liable in default of the renewal of the authority for his detention, it shall be the duty of the responsible medical officer to examine the patient; and if it appears to him that it is necessary in the Interests of the patient's health or safety or for the protection of other persons that the patient should continue to be liable to be detained, he shall furnish to the managers of the hospital where the patient is liable to be detained a report to that effect in the prescribed form.

(4) Within the period of two months ending with the day on which a patient who is subject to guardianship under this Part of this Act would cease under this section to be so liable in default of the renewal of the authority for his guardianship, it shall be the duty—

(a) where the patient is subject to the guardianship of a local health authority, of the responsible medical officer ;

(b) in any other case, of the nominated medical attendant of the patient,

to examine the patient; and, if it appears to him that it is necessary in the interests of the patient or for the protection of other persons that the patient should remain under guardianship, he shall furnish to the guardian and, where the guardian is a person other than a local health authority, to the responsible local health authority a report to that effect in the prescribed form.

(5) Where a report is duly furnished under subsection (3) or subsection (4) of this section, the authority for the detention or guardianship of the patient shall be thereby renewed for the period prescribed in that case by subsection (2) of this section.

(6) Where a report under this section is furnished in respect of a patient who has attained the age of sixteen years, the managers or the local health authority, as the case may be, shall, unless they discharge the patient, cause him to be informed, and the patient may, within the period for which the authority for his detention or guardianship is renewed by virtue of the report, apply to a Mental Health Review Tribunal.

44 Special provisions as to psychopathic and subnormal patients

(1) Notwithstanding anything in section forty-three of this Act, a patient who is subject to guardianship by virtue of a guardianship application as a psychopathic or subnormal patient shall cease to be so subject on attaining the age of twenty-five years; and a patient who is liable to be detained by virtue of an application for admission for treatment as a psychopathic or subnormal patient shall cease to be so liable on attaining that age unless the authority for his detention is renewed under the following provisions of this section.

(2) Within the period of two months ending on the day on which a patient would cease under this section to be liable to be detained in a hospital in default of the renewal of the authority for his detention, the responsible medical officer shall examine the patient, and if it appears to him that the patient, if released from the hospital upon attaining the age of twenty-five years, would be likely to act in a manner dangerous to other persons or to himself, shall furnish to the managers a report to that effect in the prescribed form; and where a report is duly furnished under this subsection the authority for the detention of the patient shall be thereby renewed, and shall continue in force accordingly after the patient attains the said age, but without prejudice to the application to the patient of the provisions of section forty-three of this Act.

(3) Where a report under subsection (2) of this section is furnished in respect of a patient, the managers shall cause the patient and the nearest relative of the patient to be informed, and the patient and that relative may, at any time before the expiration of the period of twenty-eight days beginning with the day on which the patient attains the age of twenty-five years, apply to a Mental Health Review Tribunal.

45 Special provisions as to patients absent without leave

(1) If on the day on which, apart from this section, a patient would cease to be liable to be detained or subject to guardianship under this Part of this Act or, within the period of one week ending with that day, the patient is absent without leave, he shall not cease to be so liable or subject—

(a) in any case, until the expiration of the period during which he can be taken into custody under section forty of this Act, or the day on which he is returned or returns himself to the hospital or place where he ought to be, whichever is the earlier ; and

(b) if he is returned or returns himself as aforesaid within the period first mentioned in the foregoing paragraph, until the expiration of the period of one week beginning with the day on which he is returned or returns as aforesaid.

(2) Where the period for which a patient is liable to be detained or subject to guardianship is extended by virtue of this section, any examination and report to be made and furnished under subsection (3) or subsection (4) of section forty-three or subsection (2) of section forty-four of this Act may be made and furnished within that period as so extended.

(3) Where the authority for the detention or guardianship of a patient is renewed by virtue of this section after the day on which, apart from this section, that authority would have expired under section forty-three or section forty_four of this Act, the renewal shall take effect as from that day.

46 Special provisions as to patients sentenced to imprisonment, etc.

(1) Where a patient who is liable to be detained by virtue of an application for admission for treatment or is subject to guardianship by virtue of a guardianship application is detained in custody in pursuance of any sentence or order passed or made by a court in the United Kingdom (including an order committing or remanding him in custody), and is so detained for a period exceeding, or for successive periods exceeding in the aggregate, six months, the application shall cease to have effect at the expiration of that period.

(2) Where any such patient is detained in custody as aforesaid but the application does not cease to have effect under subsection (1) of this section, then—

(a) if apart from this subsection the patient would have ceased to be liable to be detained or subject to guardianship as aforesaid on or before the day on which he is discharged from custody, he shall not cease and shall be deemed not to have ceased to be so liable or subject until the end of that day; and

(b) in any case, sections forty and forty-five of this Act shall apply in relation to the patient as if he had absented himself without leave on that day.

47 Discharge of patients

(1) Subject to the provisions of this and the next following section, a patient who is for the time being liable to be detained or subject to guardianship under this Part of this Act shall cease to be so liable or subject if an order in writing discharging him from detention or guardianship (in this Act referred to as an order for discharge) is made in accordance with the following provisions of this section.

(2) An order for discharge may be made in respect of a patient—

(a) where the patient is liable to be detained in a hospital in pursuance of an application for admission for observation, by the responsible medical officer or by the managers of the hospital;

(b) where the patient is liable to be so detained in pursuance of an application for admission for treatment, by the responsible medical officer, by the managers or by the nearest relative of the patient; and

(c) where the patient is subject to guardianship, by the responsible medical officer, by the responsible local health authority or by the nearest relative of the patient.

(3) Where the patient is liable to be detained in a mental nursing home in pursuance of an application for admission for observation or for treatment, an order for his discharge may, without prejudice to subsection (2) of this section, be made by the registration authority within the meaning of Part III of this Act and, if the patient is maintained under a contract with a regional hospital board, by that board.

(4) The powers conferred by this section on any authority or body of persons may be exercised by any three or more members of that authority or body authorised by them in that behalf.

48 Restrictions on discharge by nearest relative

(1) Where a report under subsection (2) of section forty-four of this Act has been furnished in respect of a patient, an order for discharge shall not be made by the nearest relative of the patient during the period of six months beginning with the date of the report.

(2) An order for the discharge of a patient who is liable to be detained in a hospital shall not be made by his nearest relative except after giving not less than seventy-two hours' notice in writing to the managers of the hospital; and if, within seventy-two hours after such notice has been given, the responsible medical officer furnishes to the managers a report certifying that in the opinion of that officer the patient, if discharged, would be likely to act in a manner dangerous to other persons or to himself,—

(a) any order for the discharge of the patient made by that relative in pursuance of the notice shall be of no effect; and

(b) no further order for the discharge of the patient shall be made by that relative during the period of six months beginning with the date of the report.

(3) In any case where a report under subsection (2) of this section is furnished in respect of a patient, the managers shall cause the nearest relative of the patient to be informed, and that relative may, within the period of twenty-eight days beginning with the day on which he is so informed, apply to a Mental Health Review Tribunal in respect of the patient