Ethics and Accountability In Forensic Mental Health Essay

Ethics and Accountability In Forensic Mental Health - Essay Example He was violent with a nurse when she tried to give him an injection. He does not want to sleep for fear that he will be harmed. Wayne also abuses drugs (primarily marijuana) which seems to increase his paranoia. No treatment should be provided against the patients will, unless withholding treatment would endanger the life of the patient and/or of those who surrounded him or her. Treatment must always be in the best interest of the patient (As cited in Steinert et al., 2005, p. 635). In Waynes case, withholding treatment both for medicine and mental health has exacerbated his paranoia and his behaviour. In this case, it is ethically correct to give him the medication against his will in order to stop him from causing harm to himself or others. To put Wayne into the hospital, the police or the hospital would have had to use informed consent with him. In other words, they would need to be aware of Waynes privacy and they would have had to follow the principles of beneficence and malfeasance (do no harm) (American Mental Health Counsellors Association (AMHCA) Code of Ethics). Also, they must tell Wayne what is going to happen to him, how they will use any information received and the type of treatment he can expect. Since Wayne is an adult and he does not want his family to be contacted, under the law and under ethics they cannot tell his family. This may go against what the health practitioners think but it would be important to honour his wishes. Wayne appears delusional. According to his account, he has magic spells being put on him by witches. He states that the police took him to the hospital. He sees himself as a victim of this situation, and sees all those around him as his enemies. According to his account, his actions are due to his anticipation of how others are going to treat him or are currently treating him. Howe (2008) states that clinicians must tell patients the truth about their conditions no matter what