Why aren't the laws regarding the mentally ill more stringent?

Question

Parents who beg for help see family members who can't be hospitalized no matter how much they need help. This leaves the mentally ill vulnerable OR the general public in danger. Anybody think of trying to change those laws? Any SMART psychiatrists out there?

TY for answers. You each have valid points. The ill deserve their rights. You might change your veiwpoint if it is your loved one who gets in the way as they are expressing those rights. We need a middle ground. The homeless don't have to be given the "right" to stay out in the cold and freeze to death. As for the man who shot President Reagan, he is out on the streets frequently alone. Lets hope someone sees that he takes his meds or God knows how he'll express himself next time....

Answer 1

You are part way right... BUT, there is this thing called the Constitution. Throwing people in hospitals against their will is a potentially severe violation of their Constitutional rights. And if the rules are relaxed, who is to stop people from manipulating the lax rules and arbitrarily having people thrown into hospitals when it is unnecessary. The legal costs alone in this situation would cost all of taxpayers, as well as the individual in question, especially if they are not so vulnerable as accused. The rules are as they are for a good reason. Only under very severe situations can you violate someone's rights. If it was not so, then we would have the opposite problem, and perhaps moreso than the problem we have now with people not getting help that they need. At least as it stands it is their choice, and not the choice of potentially biased doctors, family members, and law enforcement officials who might now know the entire story. It sounds like a great idea... until someone comes knocking on YOUR door with the white suit and straight jacket. Besides, it is not like you can't hospitalize people as the law stands. You just have to PROVE they are a danger to themselves. Is that so hard or unfair? I think not.

Answer 2

I'm not a psychiatrist. Well, I know a lot of times my kids see me as mentally ill and would like to see me committed. I'm not paranoid, but I think they want my money. But that's beside the point. This is a free country, if the question is coming from the USA. If a family is really concerned, they can petition the court to have the person deemed incompetent and have a guardian or personal representative appointed. If a psychiatrist determines that someone is dangerous, I believe they can recommend that the patient be hospitalized. How you get an unwilling patient into a hospital without a court order is a good question. Telling them they can't do thus and so because doctor says so is a head game. Until the patient hurts someone else or themselves, there is nothing that the authorities can do. We used to have State hospitals--we called them crazy houses--that were crammed with people, but then in the 60s and 70s someone said, hey, these people have rights, too, and have a right to live the we they want to. Who do you think the homeless people are.

Answer 3

Because lib's think we can rehabilitate these people.