Assessment of Mental Capacity: A Practical Guide for Doctors and Lawyers, 5th edition

Assessing mental capacity is a crucial process that is used in many different areas, including healthcare, social services and the legal system. The purpose of such assessment is to determine whether a person has the ability to make decisions for themselves, especially in situations where important decisions need to be made about their welfare, health or finances.

A number of factors can affect a person’s mental capacity, including illness, injury and developmental disabilities. The assessment of mental capacity is therefore a complex process that requires the expertise of trained professionals such as doctors, psychologists and lawyers, or sometimes all of the above.

Formal capacity assessments are useful for a number of reasons. First, they provide a clear and objective determination of a person’s mental capacity at a specific point in time. Second, a formal capacity assessment provides a legal record that can be used as evidence in court. This can be particularly important in situations where there are disputes over the validity of a decision made by a person who may be considered to lack capacity. Third, a formal capacity assessment can help to protect vulnerable individuals from abuse and exploitation. By ensuring that a person has the capacity to make decisions, the law can help to prevent situations where others may try to take advantage of them or make decisions on their behalf without their consent.

Overall, a formal capacity assessment is an important tool in the legal system, as it helps to ensure that individuals are able to make informed decisions about their own lives and protects them from harm.

This book is aimed at anyone needing to assess capacity and provides step-by-step guidance on what the legal tests are and how the assessments should be undertaken. As a joint venture between the Law Society of England and Wales and the British Medical Association, it provides practical advice on how capacity is, and should be, assessed. It will be an invaluable tool for anyone seeking to expand their knowledge of the area.

Commencing with legal principles, the book then helpfully breaks matters into separate chapters for different areas where you may be required to assess capacity, including ‘capacity to make a will’ and ‘capacity to litigate’. Each section is clear and concise, setting out general principles, the test specific to each area and what should be done as best practice.

The book then moves onto practicalities of mental capacity assessments and who should be completing them. The decision to use a medical professional or a social worker to complete a capacity assessment may depend on the specific circumstances of the assessment.

Medical professionals such as doctors, psychologists and psychiatrists are trained to assess a person’s cognitive functioning and may be better equipped to diagnose medical conditions that can affect a person’s mental capacity. They may also have access to medical records that could be important in making an assessment.

Social workers, on the other hand, are trained to understand social and environmental factors that may impact a person’s capacity to make decisions. They may have more experience in assessing capacity in relation to social and ethical issues, such as making decisions about end-of-life care or financial exploitation.

In some cases, it may be appropriate to use both medical and social work professionals to complete an assessment, as each professional can provide valuable insights and expertise to the assessment process.

The book offers practical guidance to those seeking to undertake a capacity assessment and identifies what questions should be asked.

Overall, this is an excellent book and should be a companion piece for anyone who is working in the increasingly complex field of capacity assessments.

ISBN: 978-1784461362

Price: GBP48

Publisher: The Law Society