The Law Handbook 2024

Chapter 8.4: Mental illness 837 of any registered medical practitioner. If the authorised psychiatrist believes the person is likely to regain decision-making capacity within a reasonable period of time they must not consent to the treatment. If any delay could result in serious harm to, or deterioration in, the mental or physical health of the patient, the authorised psychiatrist may give consent to medical treatment (s 93). Medical treatment is defined under section 3 of the Medical Treatment Planning and Decisions Act 2016 (Vic) and includes any treatments for the purposes of diagnosing a physical or mental condition, preventing disease, restoring or replacing bodily function in the face of disease or injury or improving the comfort and quality of life with treatment with physical or surgical therapy, treatment with prescription pharmaceuticals, dental treatment and palliative care. Medical treatment does not include a ‘special procedure’ (procedures related to fertility, pregnancy or tissue donation) or medical research procedure, which are covered by Part 6 of the Guardianship and Administration Act 2019 (Vic). Mental health crisis response and transport by authorised persons The MHWA has introduced a health led response principle to the mental health crisis response in Victoria. These principles require that the exercising of powers by authorised persons relating to mental health crisis responses and transport must: • wherever reasonably practicable in the circum­ stances be health-led. Where it is not reasonably practicable, the exercise of powers must, so far as is reasonably practicable, be health-informed (s 228); • be informed by a proper consideration of the mental health and wellbeing principles (s 229); • be undertaken in the least restrictive way possible, so far as reasonably practicable in the circumstances (s 230). Language has been updated in the MHWA to reflect a health-centred approach. The framework for responding to people experiencing a mental health crisis in the community and providing transport under the MHWA uses the language ‘care and control’ rather than ‘apprehension’ or ‘detention’ which is more commonly associated with law enforcement legislation or punitive measures. Authorised persons and authorised health professionals The MHWA defines ‘authorised person’ and ‘authorised health professional’. People that fall within these definitions have an important role to play in relation to mental health crisis responses and providing transport under the MHWA. Authorised persons are: • police officers • registered paramedics employed by an ambulance service as defined in section 3(1) of the Ambulance Services Act 1986 • protective services officers • registered medical practitioners employed or engaged by a designated mental health service • authorised mental health practitioners and • a member of a prescribed class of person (s 3). An authorised health professional is an authorised person who is not a police officer or protective services officer. Authorised health professionals are: • registered paramedics employed by an ambulance service as defined in section 3(1) of the Ambulance Services Act 1986 • registered medical practitioners employed or engaged by a designated mental health service • authorised mental health practitioners (s 231). Power to take a person into care and control in a mental health crisis An authorised person may take a person into care and control if satisfied that the person appears to have a mental illness and because of the person’s apparent mental illness, it is necessary to take them into care and control to prevent imminent and serious harm to them or another person (s 232). After taking a person experiencing a mental health crisis in the community into care and control, an authorised person must arrange for the person to be examined by a registered medical practitioner or an authorised mental health practitioner. A person can either be examined: