Mental Capacity Act (MCA) Directory

This opinion piece by a lay former family-carer argues that the MCA is a somewhat ugly camel, not the beautiful horse many people think it is. The author contends the Act never specifies who can be a best-interests decision-maker; it allows a legally-authorised, but crucially not medically or legally trained, layperson to be appointed as a health and welfare attorney and control best-interests decision-making; and the Act establishes further Codes to be 'regarded by' various categories of people, but not by normal family carers, who must obey the Act, but are not required to 'have regard to' the Code.

A Mental Capacity Act e-Learning course. This session covers the principles of the Mental Capacity Act and looks at how to assess capacity. It offers opportunities to reflect on aspects of the Mental Capacity Act and its practice.

A best interests decision making e-learning course. This session explores 'best interests', what it means for disabled people and how best interest decisions are made for disabled people who lack capacity.

An e-learning course on advance care planning. This session discusses Advance Care Planning and decision-making with disabled people of all ages, including using the framework and elements of the Mental Capacity Act.

A deprivation of liberty safeguards e-learning course. This session explores the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) to help understand what they are, their aim and their purpose.

Specialist software solutions for health and social care professionals responsible for DoLS.

The HEE e-LfH Mental Capacity Act e-learning programme (MCA) is made up of 11 e-learning sessions, which cover the following titles: Mental Capacity Act as part of human rights; assessing mental capacity; making decisions; best interests; restraint; deprivation of liberty; relationship between the Mental Capacity Act and the Mental Health Act; Mental Capacity Act and young people aged 16 or 17; research involving people who lack capacity; Mental Capacity Act and adult safeguarding; settling disputes and disagreements. Each e-learning session will take approximately 20 to 30 minutes to complete and is made up of knowledge, case scenarios, short interviews and...

This document provides guidance in relation to the commissioners’ duty to ensure provider services are delivered in accordance with the provisions of the Mental Capacity Act and that the rights of those who use services are promoted and protected.

This guide is for people detained under section 2 and 3 of the Mental Health Act or if you are staying in hospital as a voluntary patient. A voluntary patient (also called an informal patient) is someone who is in hospital but is not detained under the Mental Health Act. They can leave hospital at any time. However, if health professionals are concerned about their safety or the safety of others, they can stop them from leaving for up to 72 hours. The guide explains what rights individuals have and what should happen to them at different stages through their...

This guidance provides you the key legal and ethical considerations that need to be taken into account when seeking consent for treatment or research, and signposts to other sources of support and information. Topics covered include: key questions about consent and refusal; capacity to consent; sharing information with patients; who is responsible for seeking consent; refusal of consent; advance care planning; consent for emergency treatment; compulsory treatment under mental health legislation; consent for research; consent for teaching purposes.

This document sets out to inform and support psychologists to make informed, sound clinical judgements and decisions across a range of sometimes very different situations where a client’s capacity to make their own decisions is being questioned. The document is the culmination of a consensus which has developed since the implementation of the MCA 2005 in England and Wales, itself drawing on Scottish experiences, including clinical practice and experience, research studies and case law. The document’s structure follows the chronological flow of a considered approach to assessment. It starts with an overview of the current legal context, followed by necessary...

BJPsych Advances. Cambridge Core. An article by Chloe Beale, James Lee-Davey, Tennyson Lee, Alex Ruck Keene ‘…given the complexity of actual situations. We may know the stages of the test for capacity, but do we really understand what they mean and how to assess them? In this, the first of two articles examining the MCA and challenges in its application, we add to existing legal guidance to explore capacity assessment in detail…’