Deprivation of liberty safeguards
The Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards will be part of The Mental Capacity Act 2005 from April 2009. The Mental Capacity Act is a law about making decisions and what to do when people cannot make some decisions for themselves.
When people cannot make a decision for themselves this is called lacking capacity. The Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards only apply to people who are lacking capacity.
Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards are a way to make sure people are cared for and treated in the right way. If someone is living in a hospital or care home and are deprived of their liberty they need special protection to make sure they are looked after properly and are kept safe.
The deprivation of liberty safeguards are the way to give people who lack capacity the special protection they need.
Deprivation of liberty safeguards publications
The
Mental Capacity Act Deprivation of
Liberty safeguards (formerly known as
the Bournewood safeguards) were
introduced into the Mental Capacity Act
2005 through the Mental Health Act 2007
(which received Royal Assent in July
2007).
The MCA DOL safeguards apply to anyone:
- aged 18 and over who suffers from a mental disorder or
disability of the mind, such as
dementia or a profound learning
disability
- who lacks the capacity to give
informed consent to the arrangements
made for their care and / or treatment
and
- for whom deprivation of liberty
(within the meaning of Article 5 of the ECHR) is considered after an independent
assessment to be necessary in their best
interests to protect them from harm.
The safeguards cover patients in
hospitals, and people in care homes
registered under the Care Standards Act
2000, whether placed under public or
private arrangements
The aim is to implement the safeguards
in April 2009. The safeguards are
designed to protect the interests of an
extremely vulnerable group of service
users and to:
- ensure people can be given the care they need in the least restrictive regimes
- prevent arbitrary decisions that deprive vulnerable people of their liberty
- provide safeguards for vulnerable people
- provide them with rights of challenge against unlawful detention
- avoid unnecessary bureaucracy.
There are two publications, funded by the Department of Health and produced by BILD, which you can download in .pdf format: The Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards and You and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards Guide for families and carers.
Also available from the Department of Health website are easy read publications about Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards in basic and expanded versions, as well as a video version.
More information about human rights issues is available on
BILD's human rights main page.
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