A new fine of up to two hundred thousand dirhams in the United Arab Emirates.
As of Wednesday, the government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced a Federal Law on mental health that includes a range of consequences for those who violate its norms and restrictions. These penalties include imprisonment as well as a fine that is not less than Dh50,000 and not more than Dh200,000.
A law that protects patients’ rights
The newly enacted legislation is in accordance with the most recent practices and advancements in the field of mental healthcare. It protects the rights of psychiatric patients and guarantees that they will receive the highest quality of both physical and mental care.
The purpose of this law
The purpose of the law is to govern the relationship that exists between mental patients and all of the parties that are involved in their care, as well as to ensure that the essential medical care is provided in accordance with the most effective standards and practices.
In addition, the new law intends to protect the rights and dignity of psychiatric patients, as well as to greatly lessen the adverse consequences that mental illnesses have on patients, their families, and society as a whole, while simultaneously fostering the patients' social integration.
The law applies to all issues that are associated with mental health, as well as the psychiatric patient, the mental health facilities, and any other institutions in the country that are concerned with the psychiatric treatment of the patient, including those that are located in free zones. Additionally, it redefines mental health and the concept of a psychiatric patient in accordance with the most recent standards of practice and ideas in the field of mental health.
In accordance with the rules of the law, the new legislation makes it illegal to provide mental health treatments without first receiving permission from the entity that is responsible for the matter.
General rights of patients include the right to get a comprehensive explanation of their rights within the mental health facility, as well as the ability to file a complaint or grievance, as stipulated by the legislation. In addition, the patient must be provided with all of the necessary care and treatments in a suitable setting that protects their civil rights.
Rights of the patient
The law protects patients from any kind of mental, physical, exploitation, and it also ensures that they are able to keep their employment without any limits. In addition, the law safeguards the patients' personal items while they are at the mental health care facility, as well as the confidentiality of all patient information and the procedures that are taken to safeguard it.
The law outlines the frameworks for the mental and social care plan that patients are required to have upon their discharge from the facility; obtaining medical insurance in accordance with the legislation that is currently in effect; facilitating access to educational and recreational activities; and selecting representatives to advocate on their behalf both within and outside of the mental health care facility.
The law ensures that patients have access to psychotherapy and psychiatric drugs in accordance with the norms that have been established in the professional medical community. It is necessary to provide the patient with an explanation of clinical findings, treatment plans, goals, and risks. This explanation should include not only the benefits and negative effects, but also the time scale and the recommended intervention in the event of a crisis or emergency.
Minors who are receiving psychiatric treatment will be eligible for special health guarantees, taking into account their age and the severity of their psychological disease, as stipulated by the recently issued federal order. In addition, this involves the right to get an education; any procedure should be preceded by the preparation of a social worker or psychologist; and it is also important to make sure that the accommodations provided are distinct from those provided to adults. A further benefit of the law is that it mandates the implementation of age-specific health protections that take into account the age group of the minor patient and are in accordance with their best interests.
According to the law, a dedicated monitoring committee is required to be established in each emirate with the sole goal of defending the rights of psychiatric patients. Additionally, a dedicated committee is required to be established within each health facility in order to guarantee the preservation of patients' rights.
The monitoring committees in each emirate, will be responsible for following up on reports from mental health establishments concerning compulsory admissions of patients; supervising mental health care facilities and verifying their commitment to implement the standards and procedures mentioned in the decree; it will also review reports of the patients' rights committee of the emirate, and address complaints, grievances and objections.
It shall be the responsibility of the patients' rights committee in each emirate to protect the rights of mental patients, to receive complaints from psychiatric patients, and to take any and all steps and procedures that are required to resolve the issue.
In accordance with the new law, the various types of admission to the mental healthcare facility are defined. It created a variety of regulations concerning the voluntary admission of patients for the purpose of treatment of drugs or psychotropic substances, as well as the responsibility of the mental health facility in the event that the patient escapes from the facility or dies while they are there.
The newly enacted Act provides a definition of situations in which a patient is subject to compulsory outpatient therapy, as well as situations in which the patient is subject to psychological constraint, isolation, and transfer both within and beyond the country.
