Section 2 or Section 3?

Section 2 and Section 3 are the sections of the Mental Health Act that are most commonly used when compulsory detention in hospital is being considered.

Section 2 lasts for 28 days, and its main purpose is to assess a patient in hospital (although it does also permit treatment). Section 3 lasts for a maximum of 6 months, and is for the purpose of providing treatment in hospital. (The recent Mental Health Act review is, however, recommending that this duration should be reduced to 3 months.)

Statistics show a year on year increase in the use of compulsory detention. In the year 2019-20 there were a total of 27,968 admissions under S.2, and 4,043 detentions under S.3.

Here are some examples of situations in which the choice between which section to use becomes somewhat complicated.

Видео Section 2 or Section 3? канала Masked AMHP