Question about mental institutions and medications

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What happens if a person ends up in a mental institution and once there vehemently refuses to take medications? Will the guards jump on the patient, restrain him, pry open his mouth, insert a pill and possibly pour some water, until the patient swallows his med? Or will the doctors and nurses play psychological games with the patient until the patient is left with no other option but to take his meds?

All patients in a mental institution have the right to refuse medication...

Yet, if your treating psychiatrist believes that you do need psychiatric medication, they can force it upon you and give you the medication intravenously in the form of a shot. Psychiatrists have all the legal documents at their disposal...and getting a court
order judgement is no problem for them.

Just because patients have the right to refuse medications, it doesn't mean that their refusal will be honored. That's what I think you are saying.

The guards and/or orderlies will jump on the patient, restrain him, pry open his mouth, insert a pill and possibly pour some water, until the patient swallows his med, unless they have a hypo of thorazine handy. Or the medical staff will play psychological games with the patient until the patient is left with no other option but to take his meds.

Yes, all your fears of institutionalisation are real.

You have a right to refuse medication, but you won't leave until you take it because you'll be "resisting treatment". How can you have your pudding if you won't eat your meat?

If refusing medications means that I get to live at the mental institution the rest of my life, without having worry about work, taxes, food, medical care, shelter and clothing, it's a bargain.

they say you have the right to refuse medicine but in reality the pressure of taking away priveledges and then denying you the right to be discharged is based in part on you taking all medicine ordered so in reality you do not have the right to refuse medicine or they would not punish you when you do refuse

I'm assuming you're USA?

I only know about voluntary. If you're voluntary, they can't force you. Involuntary, I'm not sure. I would consider it highly unethical, but I consider most of what psychiatrists do (like... taking pharmaceutical company kickbacks) to be highly unethical.

But if you feel like you need help and are wary of checking in to a psych ward because you think that they're going to pump you full of stuff, don't worry. If you're voluntary, you still hang onto your right to refuse medication.

But when you're in there, NEVER, EVER say or do anything to make your voluntary committment become an involuntary one (as in, don't say anything that could be considered suicidal or homicidal).

Caveat: Once you check in, you can't just leave whenever you want to. That's sort of how they get you even if you're voluntary. In my state at least, you have to sign your discharge papers 72 hours in advance. I recommend signing them as soon as you go in although some people might see that as a bad sign.

The details are a little bit fuzzy, given the various state and federal regulations. While the details as Zsazsa described it are true, the details lie with who exactly adminsters the medication and where it is done. In my current state, texas, short term care facilities cannot physically restrain an individual for more than 15 seconds. Whether this means they can forcibly inject someone with something, I don't know. But I sort of doubt it. More likely, after the court order is made, and the patient continues to refuse, he would be sent to a long term care facility where they are free to do all sorts of nasty stuff, and once your there, you will stay there for a while, no matter what.

They'll try to talk you into it before they force it. That's easier for them. Often times they will threaten to force it on you, though, as part of the talking. And they are very, very good at talking. They will make you think there are no other options but to do what they say.

When I wanted to go home, after they said I was staying overnight and they made me stay for ten days, they said that they could hold me for 72 hours, not including the weekend, and that if I didn't agree voluntarily they would get a judge to make me stay; and that no judge would ever let me go because they knew how to get him to do it.

And "voluntary" included taking all medication. Including, at one point, Haldol. I insisted on getting patient-information sheets for all of them because I knew it was my right, so at least I knew what they were giving me.

They don't have to get a court order if they judge it's necessary for your safety or somebody else's. So you are likely enough, if you have a meltdown, to be forced to take medication. Even if you are just crying uncontrollably, they can assume you mean to be violent. Actually they can assume that for any reason whatsoever, and nobody will say they did not legitimately feel "threatened".

If you're a minor, you don't have the right to refuse medication if your parents OK it; and of course they will tell your parents that it is necessary or you will never get better. If you cannot communicate your refusal in words or have been declared legally incompetent, then they can force you to take anything even if you're not a threat.

Riese hearing

but that is only for the clients under 5150 or 5250

that's what the psychotherapist told me

medication capacity hearing

My country is probably a bit different. They can put a temporary hold on you for 72 hours then they have to get two doctors, generally Psychiatrists to assess you, agree and fill in the paperwork to section you. There are avenues of appeal and advocates etc. If you do get thrown in a bin, my advice is just look happy to take the meds. Put them under your tongue or slip them between your lip and gum, then spit them out when no-ones looking. It's harder for guys but if there are unisex toilets, feminine hygiene disposal bins are great. Nobody is going to dig through those suckers. They are taken away regularly and the contents incinerated. If you try to put it down a sink it poisons the waterways. Do not try to flush it. You will end up having to fish it out. One last piece of advice, work out who the difficult patients are and wait in line near them. The Nurses are going to be watching them more than you if they think you are happily complaint.