There are a million pages online about getting discharged from section, including from charities like Mind. But they all give you the official lines – Hospital Managers’ Hearing, Tribunal etc etc. What they won’t tell you about are these*:
- Flawed sectioning papers
Ask for the original sectioning paperwork. If there’s a mistake in there, the sectioning may not be valid.
For example, if the name of the previous hospital was not properly filled in, or the current hospital’s name is abbreviated or misspelled, or there is some other flaw (consult a lawyer), you may have a good case.
Tip: Walk into the hospital fully prepared with all the paperwork, and a lawyer, and demand the patient be allowed to leave “right now”. Don’t disclose the flaw to the hospital or they will quickly go and correct the error or get emergency Section 5(2) powers to hold the patient for 72 hours while they correct the paperwork!
(See also #4 below) - Make a nuisance of yourself
One of the founders of this site made such a nuisance of himself to Rhodes Wood Hospital that the management were tied up in red tape, key staff were unable to function, the RC got “stress” and went on long sick leave, the local council’s enforcement division launched action against the hospital for planning violations, there were multiple fitness to practise cases at the NMC, the GMC and social work England….
Eventually, the hospital caved. They changed his daughter’s primary diagnosis from anorexia to EUPD so they could do an emergency discharge just to get rid of him. He’s willing to talk with any other parents of patients in Rhodes Wood Hospital to explain how he went about it. Use our contact page to provide your details for him to contact you.
Which brings us to …. - Change of diagnosis
If you can achieve a change of primary diagnosis from anorexia to something else, a hospital that’s getting paid for treating an Eating Disorder now has no more reason to hold that patient and will want them discharged (or transferred elsewhere, be careful of this!). - Abscond
No, seriously. What happens if you take the patient on leave and do not return?
One parent who did this reports that the hospital threatened to get the police involved to come to the house and force the patient back to hospital. The reality with the police, however, seems to be different. Most police forces are reluctant to do anything unless there is an immediate danger to the patient or to others.
In this case, the police did nothing and the hospital got more and more demanding but the parent held firm. The hospital gave up in the end and discharged the patient after some weeks.
What about medication? The parent who did a successful abscond reports that the hospital sent the medication over to the house while the patient was AWOL.
*We are not lawyers. Always consult a lawyer before following any advice on this page.
What ideas / suggestions do YOU have? How did YOU get your section discharged?