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Related documents
- Is amended by Judicial Matters Amendment Act, 2002
- Is amended by Legal Aid South Africa Act, 2014
- Is amended by Mental Health Care Amendment Act, 2014
- Is commenced by Mental Health Care Act, 2002: Commencement
South Africa
Mental Health Care Act, 2002
Act 17 of 2002
- Published in Government Gazette 24024 on 6 November 2002
- Assented to on 28 October 2002
- Commenced on 15 December 2004 by Mental Health Care Act, 2002: Commencement
- [This is the version of this document as it was from 1 March 2015 to 30 June 2016.]
- [Amended by Judicial Matters Amendment Act, 2002 (Act 55 of 2002) on 18 February 2005]
- [Amended by Legal Aid South Africa Act, 2014 (Act 39 of 2014) on 1 March 2015]
Chapter I
Introduction
1. Definitions
In this Act, unless the context indicates otherwise—"administrator" means a person appointed in terms of section 59 to care for and administer the property of a mentally ill person and where applicable includes an interim administrator;"assisted care, treatment and rehabilitation" means the provision of health interventions to people incapable of making informed decisions due to their mental health status and who do not refuse the health interventions and "assisted care, treatment and rehabilitation services" has a corresponding meaning;"assisted mental health care user" means a person receiving assisted care, treatment and rehabilitation;"associate" means a person with a substantial or material interest in the well-being of a mental health care user or a person who is in substantial contact with the user;"care and rehabilitation centres" means health establishments for the care, treatment and rehabilitation of people with intellectual disabilities;"Constitution" means the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (Act No. 108 of 1996);"Correctional Services Act" means the Correctional Services Act, 1998 (Act No. 111 of 1998);"court" means a court of law;"Criminal Procedure Act" means the Criminal Procedure Act, 1977 (Act No. 51 of 1977);"head of a health establishment" means a person who manages the establishment concerned;"health care provider" means a person providing health care services;"health establishment" means institutions, facilities, buildings or places where persons receive care, treatment, rehabilitative assistance, diagnostic or therapeutic interventions or other health services and includes facilities such as community health and rehabilitation centres, clinics, hospitals and psychiatric hospitals;"involuntary care, treatment and rehabilitation" means the provision of health interventions to people incapable of making informed decisions due to their mental health status and who refuse health intervention but require such services for their own protection or for the protection of others and "involuntary care, treatment and rehabilitation services" has a corresponding meaning;"involuntary mental health care user" means a person receiving involuntary care, treatment and rehabilitation;"Health Professions Act" means Health Professions Act, 1974 (Act No. 56 of 1974);"medical practitioner" means a person registered as such in terms of the Health Professions Act;"mental health care practitioner" means a psychiatrist or registered medical practitioner or a nurse, occupational therapist, psychologist or social worker who has been trained to provide prescribed mental-health care, treatment and rehabilitation services;"mental health care provider" means a person providing mental health care services to mental health care users and includes mental health care practitioners;"mental health care user" means a person receiving care, treatment and rehabilitation services or using a health service at a health establishment aimed at enhancing the mental health status of a user, State patient and mentally ill prisoner and where the person concerned is below the age of 18 years or is incapable of taking decisions, and in certain circumstances may include—(i)prospective user;(ii)the person's next of kin;(iii)a person authorised by any other law or court order to act on that persons behalf;(iv)an administrator appointed in terms of this Act; and(v)an executor of that deceased person’s estate and "user" has a corresponding meaning;"mental health status" means the level of mental well-being of an individual as affected by physical, social and psychological factors and which may result in a psychiatric diagnosis;"mental illness" means a positive diagnosis of a mental health related illness in terms of accepted diagnostic criteria made by a mental health care practitioner authorised to make such diagnosis;"mentally ill prisoner" means a prisoner as defined in section 1 of the Correctional Services Act in respect of whom an order has been issued in terms of section 52(3)(a) to enable the provision of care, treatment and rehabilitation services at a health establishment designated in terms of section 49;"Minister" means a Minister responsible for Health;"national department" means the National Department of Health services within the national sphere of government;"official curator ad litem" means the Director of Public Prosecutions of a province in whose jurisdiction the State patient is detained;"prescribed" means prescribed by regulation;"prison" means a prison as defined in section 1 of the Correctional Services Act;"property", for purposes of Chapter VIII, includes income, finance, business or undertaking;"provincial department" means the department responsible for rendering health services within the provincial sphere of government;"psychiatric hospital" means a health establishment that provides care, treatment and rehabilitation services only for users with mental illness;"psychiatrist" means a person registered as such in terms of the Health Professions Act;"psychologist" means a person registered as such in terms of the Health Professions Act;"rehabilitation" means a process that facilitates an individual attaining an optimal level of independent functioning;"relevant member of the Executive Council" means a member of the Executive Council responsible for health in a province;"Review Board" means Mental Health Review Board established in terms of section 18;"severe or profound intellectual disability" means a range of intellectual functioning extending from partial self-maintenance under close supervision, together with limited self-protection skills in a controlled environment through limited self care and requiring constant aid and supervision, to severely restricted sensory and motor functioning and requiring nursing care;"social worker" means a person registered as such in terms of the Social Services Professions Act, 1978 (Act No. 110 of 1978);"State patient" means a person so classified by a court directive in terms of section 77(6)(a)(i) or 78(6)(i)(aa) of the Criminal Procedure Act;[definition of "State patient" substituted by section 19 of Act 55 of 2002]"this Act" includes the regulations;"voluntary care, treatment and rehabilitation" means the provision of health interventions to a person who gives consent to such interventions.2. Interpretation
Chapter II
Fundamental provisions
3. Objects of Act
The objects of this Act are to—4. Implementation of policies and measures by State
Every organ of State responsible for health services must determine and co-ordinate the implementation of its policies and measures in a manner that—5. Designation of health establishments administered under the auspices of State as psychiatric hospitals or as care and rehabilitation centres
6. Provision of mental health care, treatment and rehabilitation services at health establishments
Chapter III
Rights and duties relating to mental health care users
7. Application of Chapter
8. Respect, human dignity and privacy
9. Consent to care, treatment and rehabilitation services and admission to health establishments
10. Unfair discrimination
11. Exploitation and abuse
12. Determinations concerning mental health status
13. Disclosure of information
14. Limitation on intimate adult relationships
Subject to conditions applicable to providing care, treatment and rehabilitation services in health establishments, the head of a health establishment may limit intimate relationships of adult mental health care users only if due to mental illness, the ability of the user to consent is diminished.15. Right to representation
16. Discharge reports
The head of a health establishment must, in a prescribed form, issue a discharge report to the user who was admitted for purposes of receiving care, treatment and rehabilitation services.17. Knowledge of rights
Every health care provider must, before administering any care, treatment and rehabilitation services, inform a mental health care user in an appropriate manner of his or her rights, unless the user has been admitted under circumstances referred to in section 9(1)(c).Chapter IV
Mental Health Review Boards
18. Establishment
19. Powers and functions of Review Board
20. Composition of Review Board
21. Removal
22. Vacancies
23. Remuneration
24. Procedures of Review Board
Chapter V
Voluntary, assisted and involuntary mental health care
25. Voluntary care, treatment and rehabilitation services
A mental health care user who submits voluntarily to a health establishment for care, treatment and rehabilitation services, is entitled to appropriate care, treatment and rehabilitation services or to be referred to an appropriate health establishment.26. Care, treatment and rehabilitation services for mental health care users incapable of making informed decisions
Subject to section 9(1)(c), a mental health care user may not be provided with assisted care, treatment and rehabilitation services at a health establishment as an outpatient or inpatient without his or her consent, unless—27. Application for assisted care, treatment and rehabilitation services
28. Initial review of assisted mental health care user by Review Board
29. Appeal against decision of head of health establishment to approve application for assisted care, treatment and rehabilitation
30. Periodic review and annual reports on assisted health care users
31. Recovery of capacity of assisted mental health care users to make informed decisions
32. Care, treatment and rehabilitation of mental health care users without consent
A mental health care user must be provided with care, treatment and rehabilitation services without his or her consent at a health establishment on an outpatient or inpatient basis if—33. Application to obtain involuntary care, treatment and rehabilitation
34. 72-Hour assessment and subsequent provision of further involuntary care, treatment and rehabilitation
35. Appeal against decision of head of health establishment on involuntary care, treatment and rehabilitation
36. Judicial review on need for further involuntary care, treatment and rehabilitation services
Within 30 days after receipt of the documents submitted by the Review Board in terms of section 34(7) or 35(4), the High Court—37. Periodic review and annual reports on involuntary mental health care users
38. Recovery of capacity of involuntary mental health care users to make informed decisions
39. Transfer of mental health care users to maximum security facilities
40. Intervention by members of South African Police Service
Chapter VI
State patients
41. Designation of health establishments for State patients
The head of the national department must, with the concurrence of the relevant heads of the provincial departments, designate health establishments which may admit, care for, treat and provide rehabilitation services to State patients.42. Admission of State patients to designated health establishments
43. Transfer of State patients between designated health establishments
44. State patients who abscond
45. Leave of absence from designated health establishments
46. Periodic review of mental health status of State patients
47. Application for discharge of State patients
48. Conditional discharge of State patients, amendments to conditions or revocation of conditional discharge
Chapter VII
Mentally ill prisoners
49. Designation of health establishments for prisoners who are mentally ill
The head of the national department must, with the concurrence of the heads of the provincial departments, designate health establishments which may admit, care for, treat and provide rehabilitation services to mentally ill prisoners.50. Enquiry into mental health status of prisoner
51. Care, treatment and rehabilitation of prisoners with mental illnesses in prison
If the person conducting the enquiry referred to in section 50, finds that the mental illness of the convicted prisoner is of such a nature that the prisoner concerned could appropriately be cared for, treated and rehabilitated in the prison, the head of the prison must take the necessary steps to ensure that the required levels of care, treatment and rehabilitation services are provided to that prisoner.52. Magisterial enquiry concerning transfer to designated health establishments
53. Procedure to transfer mentally ill prisoners to designated health establishments
54. Transfer of mentally ill prisoners between designated health establishments
55. Periodic reviews of mental health status of mentally ill prisoners
56. Recovery of mental health status of mentally ill prisoners
If the head of a health establishment has reason to believe from personal observation or from information obtained, that a mentally ill prisoner has recovered from the mental illness to such an extent that the prisoner no longer requires care, treatment and rehabilitation or that the required care, treatment and rehabilitation can be appropriated given at a prison, the head of the establishment must—57. Mentally ill prisoners who abscond from health establishments
58. Procedure on expiry of term of imprisonment of mentally ill prisoner
Chapter VIII
Care and administration of property of mentally ill person or person with severe or profound intellectual disability
59. Appointment of administrator for care and administration of property of mentally ill person or person with severe or profound intellectual disability
60. Application to Master of High Court for appointment of administrator
61. Recommendation to appoint administrator by High Court during enquiry or in course of legal proceeding
62. Confirmation of appointment of administrator
An appointment of an administrator is effective from the date on which a Master of a High Court signs an official notice of such appointment.63. Powers, functions and duties of administrators and miscellaneous provisions relating to appointment of administrators
64. Termination of administrator
65. Administration of property of mentally ill person or person with severe or profound intellectual disability
In addition to this Chapter the provisions of sections 75, 78, 79, 83, 84 and 85 of the Administration of Estates Act, 1965 (Act No. 66 of 1965), with the necessary changes, apply to any administrator appointed in respect of a mentally disabled person.Chapter IX
Regulations
66. Regulations
67. Content of regulations
68. Procedure for making regulations
69. Conditions and exemptions contained in regulations
Chapter X
General provisions
70. Offences and penalties
71. Establishment of advisory or technical committees
72. Delegation and assignment of powers and agreements
73. Repeal of laws
74. Transitional arrangements
75. Short title and commencement
This Act is called the Mental Health Care Act, 2002, and comes into operation on a date fixed by the President by proclamation in the Gazette.History of this document
01 July 2016 amendment not yet applied
Amended by
Mental Health Care Amendment Act, 2014
01 March 2015 this version
Amended by
Legal Aid South Africa Act, 2014
18 February 2005
15 December 2004
Commenced by
Mental Health Care Act, 2002: Commencement
06 November 2002
28 October 2002
Assented to
Subsidiary legislation
Title | Numbered title |
---|---|
General Regulations, 2004 | Government Notice R1467 of 2004 |
General Regulations: Amendment | Government Notice 1590 of 2016 |
General Regulations; Correction | Government Notice R98 of 2005 |
Cited documents 2
Act 2
1. | Criminal Procedure Act, 1977 | 3705 citations |
2. | Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 | 603 citations |
Documents citing this one 365
Gazette 300
Act 22
By-law 19
Judgment 14
Provincial Notice 6
Government Notice 3
1. | General Regulations, 2004 | |
2. | Legal Aid of South Africa Regulations, 2017 | |
3. | Refugees Regulations, 2018 |
Proclamation 1
1. | Placement on Parole of Selected Categories of Sentenced offenders |