Compulsory treatment for alcoholism - how to send an alcoholic to the hospital by court order. Compulsory treatment of alcoholism
Many families of alcoholics are looking forward to a reform that will reconcile human rights activists with the objective need in Russia. And in this article we'll talk About, how to send for compulsory treatment for alcoholism. At the legislative level, involuntary hospitalization is already permitted - but only for a narrow circle of addicts.
Compulsory treatment for alcoholism by court order
Not only relatives of an alcoholic, but also those around them can become the initiators of compulsory treatment. It is important to take into account that the forcible detention of a person in clinical institutions without legal grounds Therefore, carrying out medical manipulations with him from the point of view of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is a punishable act.
Thus the basis for compulsory treatment for alcohol can be:
a person's danger to himself - for example, suicide attempts, self-harm;
the danger of an alcoholic to others (threats, attacks, committing real crimes);
Lack of treatment will make it worse mental problems;
inability to care for oneself at the level necessary for survival.
The court decision is made after considering the evidence base - video, photographic materials, certificates and extracts from medical institutions, results psychiatric examination. If the court finds that the dependent person needs medical care, can be prescribed on an outpatient basis and hospital treatment– both in a regular hospital and in a private or public drug treatment center.
A referral to a medical institution from the court is mandatory in the case of a serious offense and the subsequent diagnosis of a severe mental disorder in the patient. Treatment for alcoholism through the court is regulated by the Law “On Psychiatric Care and Guarantees of the Rights of Citizens in its Provision.”
However, isolating a person in a psychiatric hospital is last resort and is awarded in cases of mental disorder that is dangerous to the life and health of others - that is, when outpatient and voluntary treatment is impossible and may cause harm to society. Usually the basis is the commission of a criminal offense against the background of alcohol abuse. The real threat of committing it rarely leads to forced treatment of the patient.
To open a case, you need a statement to the police from neighbors or family members of the patient, a call to the local police officer (to obtain a certificate of real threat emanating from an alcoholic) and filing a claim in court (a statement of claim can be filed by any interested person, including a colleague or friend). As evidence in court, you will need any certificates, information media and witness testimony that can confirm that the patient caused or attempted to cause damage to their life, health or property due to a mental disorder of alcohol etiology.
There is another way to place an addict in a hospital - emergency hospitalization by decision of the emergency psychiatric team. Coupled with a collective appeal and a certificate from a forensic expert about a previously diagnosed mental illness in an alcoholic, the testimony of emergency doctors can sway the court in favor of compulsory treatment. A claim can also be filed medical institutions, at the request of the patient’s relatives, if he mental condition requires hospitalization.
How to treat alcoholism without the patient’s consent at home
Treatment for alcoholism without the consent of the addict is often attempted outside the clinic, forgetting that such practice is a criminal offense. " Folk remedies"and conspiracies have no effect - unless the alcoholic himself believes in them and guesses about their use. On numerous forums about how to cure alcoholism forcibly, all kinds of powders and tablets are actively promoted. But even medicinal herbs, used in incorrect dosages and without taking into account contraindications.
There is no need to talk about disulfiram-type drugs, which desperate wives try to put in the food and drink of an alcoholic - they put a serious burden on cardiovascular system and the patient’s body as a whole. As a result of this “treatment” of alcoholism, a violently addicted person may end up in the hospital with a heart attack. In the best case scenario, he drinks even more bitterly, trying to interrupt discomfort, which he does not even think to associate with alcohol.
Narcologists do not recommend creating situations that could completely alienate an alcoholic from loved ones. Non-aggressive methods without swearing, threats and playing on guilt are much more effective. The patient's relatives are advised to emphasize the visible deterioration in his condition - early aging, changes in appearance. You should not provide for an alcoholic and surround him with care - on the contrary, make him feel how much effort it is worth. Forced to provide for themselves, the addict feels the consequences more acutely addiction, feels sick and thinks about treatment.
If this method does not work, it is necessary to make the alcoholic understand that he risks losing his family. Remind him of the painfulness of his condition after negative incidents caused by alcohol consumption and which received an emotional response from the addict. All conversations should be conducted only during breaks between binges, when the patient is able to make decisions in a sober mind.
Help from a narcologist in treating an alcoholic without consent
Treatment of a persistent alcoholic usually begins with a consultation with a narcologist-psychiatrist or psychotherapist for his loved ones. Gradually bringing a person to the need for treatment requires a clear plan of action and perseverance, so the narcologist teaches the addict’s relatives not to become codependent on him, to monitor the patient’s manipulations and to counteract them correctly. If crisis motivation from loved ones cannot be correctly implemented or has not brought results, they can use the service of calling a narcologist to their home.
The main objective of these measures is to obtain the patient’s consent, because how to treat alcoholism without desire patient is impossible. The temporary effect of therapy almost always ends in a new breakdown without the patient’s own motivation.
Intervention procedure
The benefits of psychotherapeutic intervention are not exaggerated - it is indeed effective, but complex method. They can convince an alcoholic to undergo treatment in almost any drug treatment clinic, but this procedure is not cheap, although it is definitely worth the money, your nerves and the health of the patient. The procedure is carried out at home by a psychiatrist or team rehabilitation center and can take several hours. The essence of the belief is that the patient is confronted with the problem face to face, depriving him of the main illusions that accompany alcoholism - that he can quit, he simply doesn’t want to, and that addiction will cost him without consequences. Persuasion can be carried out both while awake and under hypnosis, but an important condition for its effectiveness is the sobriety of the patient. An alcoholic who is on a binge is inaccessible to any type of psychological influence and needs detoxification.
The intervention procedure can involve close people of the addict, conducting a dialogue with him and pointing out the consequences of alcoholism under the guidance of a specialist, or volunteers from among former drug addicts.
Guided by a psychiatrist-narcologist, the patient realizes, if not the whole situation, then at least the problems that alcohol creates for loved ones and for him, and comes to the need to move towards treatment; in almost all cases, the alcoholic agrees to at least hospitalization for detoxification. When a person ends up in the clinic, it is easier to convince him to continue treatment, so immediately after withdrawal from the binge, correction of the patient’s behavior continues.
provided for by current legislation. However, it is worth remembering that this is only possible in cases clearly specified in special regulations. In other situations, such treatment requires the consent of the patient or his legal representative. In this article we will tell you how compulsory treatment for alcoholism is carried out in the Russian Federation.
What is compulsory treatment for alcoholism?
This is the placement of a patient without his consent (or without the consent of his legal representative) for treatment in a specialized medical institution with the aim of isolating him from society, bringing him to the stage of forced remission and subsequent recovery from alcoholism.
That is forced treatment for alcoholism is a measure of state coercion aimed at curing the patient.
According to current legislation, treatment of a patient for alcoholism is carried out only with his consent (or with the consent of his legal representative). However, there are cases when the legislator allows compulsory treatment of alcoholic citizens, but only by court decision.
Despite their powers, the courts need sufficiently strong evidence that a citizen suffering from alcoholism is violating the rights and legitimate interests of other citizens. For example, your neighbor abuses alcohol and constantly throws noisy parties at night. Call the local police officer and record this fact. If this happens repeatedly, so much the better. With evidence in hand, you can go to court (it would be more effective to do this collectively), and the court may decide to send the citizen for compulsory treatment.
In addition, significant evidence in court will be the conclusion of a forensic medical examination that a citizen has mental illness and his actions harm others. Simply put, if a patient has developed a “squirrel problem,” then go to court and file a petition for an examination.
Compulsory treatment for alcoholism in the event of a crime
Forced treatment alcoholism provided for in Articles 97-104 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation as one of the types of psychiatric illness. In particular, the following may be prescribed as compulsory measures:
- ambulatory treatment;
- hospital treatment;
- inpatient treatment in medical organizations specialized type;
- inpatient treatment in specialized medical organizations with intensive supervision.
Compulsory treatment of alcoholism can be assigned only by court decision in relation to persons who have committed a crime.
A citizen against whom compulsory measures are applied is subject to a medical examination once every 6 months to examine the possibility of terminating treatment or extending it. This medical examination can also be carried out at the request of the patient, his relatives or legal representatives. The decision to change a compulsory measure or to terminate it is made only by the court on the basis of the conclusion of a medical commission.
Summarize:
- compulsory treatment for alcoholism is prescribed only if the court passes a guilty verdict, which specifies a compulsory medical measure as a punishment;
- Alcoholic citizens include those who systematically consume alcoholic drinks and does not want to undergo treatment voluntarily;
- the court makes a decision on compulsory treatment for alcoholism only on the basis of a medical examination report, which must indicate the need for such treatment. However, the court has the right to disagree with the experts' arguments.
What is involuntary hospitalization?
In practice, there are cases when prolonged alcoholism develops into more serious illness, and the citizen becomes dangerous to himself and to society. What to do in this case?
The Law of the Russian Federation of July 2, 1992 No. 3185-1 “On psychiatric care and guarantees of the rights of citizens during its provision” provides that a citizen suffering from alcoholism can be hospitalized in a medical institution to provide him with specialized care in a hospital without his consent (or without consent of the legal representative) before a court decision is made, if treatment is possible only in a hospital, and the course of the disease is severe and is determined by:
- human helplessness, that is, the inability to independently satisfy basic needs;
- the danger of his behavior for others and himself;
- causing significant harm to one’s health if left without medical assistance.
Is not forced treatment for alcoholism. In fact, involuntary placement in a hospital includes cases when a citizen begins to show signs of a mental disorder while drinking alcohol. Therefore, simply alcoholism, without “aggravating” consequences, does not fit this terminology. After the citizen completes the course of treatment, he will be allowed to go home.
Despite the fact that the antisocial behavior of citizens suffering from alcoholism causes harm to others, the leadership of the Russian Federation claims that in Russia, compulsory treatment for alcoholism without the consent of the patient (or his legal representative), except in cases provided for by law, will not be introduced, since this violates rights of citizens and contradicts the principles of international law.
There are situations in life when people abuse alcohol or drugs and at the same time claim their adequacy and the absence of such bad habits. Naturally, they do not admit their addiction and refuse to undergo treatment voluntarily. How to send a patient for compulsory treatment without his consent, read further in the article.
Who should be sent for compulsory treatment?
Some diseases affect not only addicted people, but also their relatives and friends, who cannot live normally with a drug or alcohol addict, as this brings a huge number of problems, instability in life, quarrels and troubles. Therefore, they are increasingly wondering how to send them for compulsory treatment loved one, which has mental disorders, behaves inappropriately, is addicted to drinking alcohol or is hooked on a drug needle (including other types and forms of drugs). As for the last two cases, then in them there should also be a violation mental processes.
What documents are needed to submit for compulsory treatment?
I would like to note that in order to send a person for treatment without his consent, it is necessary:
statement from relatives;
medical conclusion about the actual presence of all signs of personality inadequacy.
How to send for compulsory treatment?
First of all, people who have mental disorders and whose actions may threaten the health and lives of other people are suitable for compulsory treatment. In addition, if a person has committed a crime (murder, causing severe bodily harm), and the court has declared him insanity, this can also serve as a reason for compulsory treatment. As for drug addiction and alcoholism, these are not diseases that require compulsory treatment. This contingent of people is subjected to compulsory treatment only if they have clear signs of mental disorders. Only then is it possible to treat drug addicts and alcoholics in a drug dispensary without their consent.
To determine how serious a person’s condition is, a specialist doctor who works in your area will help. You can get a referral to a psychiatrist from him. If the patient is not able to go to him himself, he is obliged to come to your home. If the doctor confirms your fears that this patient may pose a threat to your and own life, then he will write you a document allowing you to send a person for compulsory treatment without his voluntary consent.
If your mental condition worsens, you should call ambulance and provide them with a certificate from a psychiatrist authorizing the patient to be sent for compulsory treatment. After this, the ambulance staff must take care to take the patient to mental asylum and leave him to undergo inpatient treatment. If you do not want to wait until the next complication occurs in the patient’s condition, you can take a certificate and go to the hospital yourself.
How to resolve the issue of legal capacity to send for compulsory treatment?
In order to find out whether a mentally ill person is competent, you need to contact the judicial staff and resolve this issue. If the answer to the question of legal capacity is satisfied, then you can think about registering guardianship, after which you will be able to regulate the patient’s continued stay in compulsory treatment. If a crime was committed by a mentally unstable person before compulsory treatment, then you will not have the opportunity to take the sick person home until all the reasons for his behavior are clarified. In addition, doctors must recognize the person undergoing compulsory treatment as completely healthy and such that he no longer poses any danger to the people around him.
Compulsory treatment of alcoholism consists of hospitalization in specialized medical institutions without the consent of the patient. The clinic provides a course of treatment aimed at eliminating addictions. The following applies to the patient:
- a course of various medications;
- sessions with a psychotherapist;
- occupational therapy and so on.
Compulsory treatment and hospitalization of an alcoholic is necessary during the period alcoholic psychosis. Mental disorder may appear as:
- "delirium tremens";
- auditory and visual hallucinations;
- delirium.
In such pathological condition the patient poses a threat to himself and others. For example, he may jump out of a window in an attempt to escape his hallucinations, or attack others, mistaking them for monsters. In such a situation, there is only one way out - to send a socially dangerous person for compulsory treatment.
Grounds and evidence for trial
IN Russian Federation Conducting therapy in a drug treatment clinic is possible only with the voluntary consent of the patient. Even a wife cannot force her husband to a medical facility.
However, there is a law on compulsory treatment of alcoholism. It states that a forcibly ill person can be sent to a drug treatment clinic only by court order. But the law requires strong arguments to prescribe mandatory treatment for alcoholism and drug addiction.
The main ones:
- the patient cannot take care of himself (eat, clean, wash, etc.). He requires 24-hour supervision;
- an alcoholic is socially dangerous. It can cause harm to people around you;
- the patient threatens to commit suicide or has already attempted suicide;
- the addict violated law and order (a crime was committed).
But before placing a patient in a drug treatment clinic under duress, it is necessary to prove to the judge that there are good reasons for this. Testimony from close relatives alone is not enough.
The following may serve as evidence:
- photos, videos that film the patient in drunkenness. It can be riotous aggressive behavior, threats, etc. The more material, the better. This will be a valid reason for forcibly placing an addict in a drug treatment clinic;
- witnesses - the testimony of close relatives is not the basis for the trial. You can involve neighbors, colleagues, acquaintances of an alcoholic;
- Call the police - if the patient behaves inappropriately, immediately call the law enforcement authorities. They will protect you from the addict and provide required material in a court;
- the conclusion of a forensic medical examination - if it is carried out on time and it shows psychical deviations in a dependent person, this will be strong evidence of the patient’s insanity.
The more evidence is collected, the greater the chances of stopping a relative’s continuous drunkenness, which can be dangerous not only for him, but also for those around him. By court decision he is forcibly hospitalized in specialized institution.
Forced therapy without trial
As mentioned earlier, compulsory hospitalization of an alcoholic, according to the laws of the Russian Federation, without a court order is impossible. But if the situation is very difficult, and a person fears that the patient may harm himself or others, there is another way out - voluntary-compulsory treatment.
The patient can be persuaded to go to the clinic for treatment. Persuasion from close relatives and people is unlikely to yield results. Therefore, you can resort to help qualified specialists. Experienced psychologists can come to a person’s home and talk with the patient. In most cases, this helps and the patient agrees to hospitalization.
Addiction Treatment Facilities
If there is tightness in cash, then the patient can be admitted to a state drug treatment hospital. Treatment there is provided free of charge. But this institution has disadvantages. After undergoing therapy in such a hospital, the patient will not be able to obtain a medical record, or will not be able to get a job where access to a narcologist is required.
There are also many private drug treatment clinics. Service there is carried out at high level, but also costs a lot of money. Selected for the patient individual treatment. According to statistics, there are two times fewer breakdowns in such institutions than in public institutions.
Documentation required to place a patient in a hospital:
- passport;
- if the patient has accompanying illnesses, then it will be necessary medical card from the clinic;
- an application addressed to the chief physician with a request for involuntary hospitalization. It is necessary to clearly describe why the patient needs to be admitted to the clinic without his desire;
- court ruling - this document necessary to confirm the legality of actions.
As with hospitalization in any medical facility, the patient needs to pack the necessary things with him.
Disadvantages of involuntary hospitalization
Forcibly placing an alcoholic in a hospital will not give the same effective result as if the patient voluntarily wants to get rid of his addiction. That is why therapeutic activities include the work of psychologists who motivate the patient to give up alcohol and start a new full life.
Compulsory treatment, if specialists fail to “reach out” to the patient, most often ends in failure.
Therapy medications may provide relief from withdrawal symptoms negative impact on psychological condition sick. This often leads to various kinds of disorders, because the patient’s psyche as a result alcohol addiction very unstable.
The treatment method is selected based on the pathogenesis of alcohol dependence. A patient who does not want to be healed will never tell himself the reason for his destructive addiction. Therefore, treatment may not bring the desired result.
The patient may hold a grudge against those who forcibly placed him in a medical facility. He does not understand that his loved ones showed concern for him. As the person heals, he may begin to realize this, but he will still have a residue.
Objectives of compulsory treatment
Goals for treatment of alcohol dependence under duress:
- removal from the patient’s body of toxic substances that have accumulated as a result of decay ethyl alcohol- detoxification;
- sessions with a psychotherapist. They are aimed at making the patient aware of his illness. He must want to recover from alcoholism;
- identifying the causes of alcoholism;
- obtain firm consent from the addict to treatment for addiction.
The final task is to bring the patient both morally and physically to complete refusal from alcohol.
Methods to persuade a patient to undergo treatment
In order for an addict to agree to hospitalization, it is necessary to bring him to the realization that his condition is not normal. You need to talk to him about this only in a sober state. In an alcoholic intoxication, he will not perceive this, and it will only anger him. You need to try to “reach out” to him, and not threaten and swear.
It is also worth trying to convince the addict that he has health problems, that he has lost a lot of weight, has aged, and so on. This must be done very delicately.
There is no need to do anything for an alcoholic. He has to cook, clean, etc. himself. In other words, serve yourself independently. Many people make the mistake of doing almost everything for the addict.
If you were unable to “reach out” to the alcoholic on your own, you can turn to specialists. Any drug treatment clinic has full-time psychologists who can come to your home. They will try to get the patient to consent to treatment.
Alcoholism is a problem from which no family is immune. It is decimating the country's working population like an epidemic, killing up to half a million people annually, of whom 30% are men and 17% are women. Not everyone succeeds in overcoming this terrible addiction on their own, since at first a person does not feel that he has fallen into a trap, but later late stages The craving for alcoholic beverages is already too great and willpower alone is not enough. Therefore, you often have to look for where to take an alcoholic for compulsory treatment. Alcohol is harmful not only to physical health person, but also for the psyche. Being “under steam”, many people become aggressive, provoking scandals and fights. The statistics on crimes committed while intoxicated are depressing: for last year More than four hundred thousand such cases have been recorded. A drinking person poses a danger to others, and therefore sooner or later the question arises in every family: how to send an alcoholic for compulsory treatment?
To call the brigade, a statement from relatives was enough. However, in such labor treatment centers, rather, a kind of confinement of patients was carried out, since there was no special treatment was not carried out there. In the USSR there was no such question: is it possible to treat an alcoholic forcibly. Occupational therapy undoubtedly had its fruits: some returned to normal life without alcohol, returned to work, improved relationships in the family. But in this case, the patients did not receive any psychological help, and in the treatment of addictions this is one of the key methods. Therefore, relapses were frequent, and alcoholism mostly became chronic. 
Also worked across the country a large number of sobering-up stations where drunk people from the streets and other public places. They stayed there until they sobered up completely, and then returned home, paying a receipt for the services provided.
How to force treatment?
Currently the law prohibits sending drinking man V medical institution against his will. Nowadays, compulsory hospitalization of an alcoholic is possible only after an appropriate court decision. To collect materials for the court, you need to call the district police officer on all the facts inappropriate behavior. Also, the court's decision may be influenced by numerous testimony from neighbors and family acquaintances. If a medical examination confirms the presence of alcoholism, the patient will be placed in a specialized institution, and the question of how to force an alcoholic to undergo forced treatment will be dealt with by health workers and psychiatrists. There are proven methods.
How to determine an alcoholic for compulsory treatment before trial? Sometimes this is possible. This usually happens for the following reasons:
- The person cannot take care of himself and needs medical care;
- His behavior can harm others and himself;
- The man repeatedly threatened to commit suicide and attempted suicide.
An alcohol addict who has committed a crime may also be sent to a hospital for treatment. In this case, a commission is convened, and if there is chronic alcoholism confirmed, the patient can be sent to a specialized institution. 
Psychiatric help for alcohol addicts
Before calling a psychiatric ambulance for alcoholics, you need to make sure that:
- The person is in a state alcoholic delirium, sees hallucinations, is not oriented in space and can harm himself through negligence;
- Alcohol intoxication has caused an aggressive state, the person rushes at others with fists, threatens with a knife and poses a real threat;
- The person is depressed and attempts suicide.
In the second case, be sure to call the police before the ambulance team. They will help neutralize the patient and hold him until the ambulance arrives.
For effective treatment alcoholism experts advise AlcoLock product. This drug:
Where are they treated for free?
If you are looking for where to identify an alcoholic for free, contact government medical institutions of various types. Such treatment is divided into outpatient and inpatient, and inpatient, in turn, can be carried out both in regular medical institutions and in institutions with intensive supervision. As a rule, convicts are sent to the latter if such a preventive measure has been chosen as submitting an alcoholic for compulsory treatment.
There are also centers social rehabilitation, where you can take a rehabilitation course for free. However, in such centers it turns out that psychological help without drug treatment.
How to hospitalize?
How to hospitalize an alcoholic if there is no court decision and medical examination report? Alas, no way. Modern laws require that a person’s will be respected, and if he has not committed illegal or life-threatening actions, it will not be possible to place him in a hospital. 
However, modern drug treatment clinics employ specialists, including many professional psychologists. Relatives and friends of such patients often turn to them to find out where to surrender the drinker without his consent. They have extensive experience in convincing alcohol addicts, and after a conversation with such a specialist, no coercive measures will be required. One of the most important conditions on the path to recovery is the patient’s desire to overcome his illness, and the task of doctors is to evoke this desire in him. And then it will end in success.
When choosing where to hospitalize an alcoholic, pay attention to many factors, including:
- positive reviews about the clinic on independent websites;
- availability of all necessary certificates;
- complete anonymity for clients;
- highly qualified attending physicians;
- comfortable conditions for keeping patients.
Many clinics provide free post-rehabilitation support for their clients. Having chosen where to take an alcoholic, based on the advice above, you can count on good results rehabilitation and low relapse rate.
