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Advance Directives in Various Countries
Psychiatric Advance Directives can be a very important and effective tool to combat forced drugging and other forced psychiatric "treatment." PsychRights has at least some information on Psychiatric Advance Directives in the following countries:
There is a good discussion of Advance Directives, by the Australian Mental Health Legal Centre and there are a couple of chapters about Psychiatric Advance Directives in the book, Alternatives Beyond Psychiatry (2007, updated ebook-edition 2014): "Upholding psychiatric advance directives: 'The rights of a flea,'" by Laura Ziegler and "Advance directives: A step towards self-help" by Miriam Krücke.
Since 2009, Germany has had progressive legislation safeguarding psychiatric
advance directives. People who want to effectively protect themselves
legally from violent psychiatric treatment can do this by creating advance
directives. In that year, the German guardianship law was reformed and a
provision (“Advance directive for health care”, § 1901a) included that an
adult considered capable of consent has the right to affirm in writing
“independently of the type and stage of an illness” whether he or she
“assents or disagrees with treatments, diagnostic procedures or medical
interventions that are not immediately at hand at the time of this
declaration.” For more information see: Peter Lehmann, “Forced Psychiatric
Treatment (and Protection against it) in Germany in 2013”, contribution for
“Mad in America – Science, Psychiatry and Community” (webzine of Robert
Whitaker), September 7, 2013 –
http://www.madinamerica.com/2013/09/forced-psychiatric-treatment-protection-germany-2013/
Last modified 6/19/2014
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