Section 5(2) of the Mental Health Act: Local and national use over a twelve-year period

Abstract

The pattern of use of Section 5(2) of the Mental Health Act 1983 was examined over a 12-year period at one psychiatric hospital. Although there was a national trend for Section 5(2) to be used more frequently, the local pattern was of a fluctuating number of patients being placed on this Section, but without there being any upward trend towards its increased use. As has been seen in other studies, Section 5(2), however, tended to be used for a younger group of patient who had often only been admitted within the previous 24 hours.

Section 5(2) MHA 1983: results of a three-year rapid cycle clinical audit

“…It is used where doctors believe it is necessary to protect a person's health or their safety or to protect that of others and where a doctor believes an application for admission under section 2, 3 or 4 of the MHA is not feasible. There is no right of appeal against being placed under section 5(2) and questions have been raised about how often and why this section is used (Mason and Turner 1994;Salib et al, 2000;Grant, 2004). To evaluate the use of section 5(2) at the Caludon Centre, an inpatient psychiatric unit in Coventry, we conducted a rapid cycle clinical audit (NICE, 2002) over a period of three years.…”