Western Australian Current Acts

MENTAL HEALTH ACT 2014 - SECT 232

232 .         Criteria for authorising bodily restraint

        (1)         A person cannot give an oral authorisation or make a bodily restraint order in respect of a person unless satisfied of these things —

            (a)         the person needs to be restrained to —

                  (i)         provide the person with treatment; or

                  (ii)         prevent the person from physically injuring himself or herself or another person; or

                  (iii)         prevent the person from persistently causing serious damage to property;

                and

            (b)         there is no less restrictive way of providing the treatment or preventing the injury or damage; and

            (c)         the use of bodily restraint on the person is unlikely to pose a significant risk to the person’s physical health.

        (2)         A mental health practitioner or the person in charge of a ward cannot give an oral authorisation or make a bodily restraint order in respect of a person unless also satisfied that —

            (a)         the person needs to be restrained urgently; and

            (b)         a medical practitioner is not reasonably available to give an oral authorisation or make a bodily restraint order in respect of the person.