Q. Can a mentally ill person be forced to take medications against their will? What if that person is stable and what if they are not stable? Can a family member agree with the doctors and go against their wishes to take medication, and can the mentally ill person assign someone to act on their behalf if they become ill?

Lori

A. That depends. Unless the individual fills out an ADMHT form (I will explain in a minute), medications can be administered to someone who is unable to make his/her own medical decisions. Only a judge has the power to overrule an ADMHT.

ADMHT stands for "Advance Directive for Mental Health Treatment" and it is a legally binding document that an adult consumer of mental health services can write in order to communicate his/her decisions and preferences for mental health treatment - including medication, restraint techniques, and electroconvulsive therapy. The mentally ill individual can also name someone as a "surrogate" to see that these wishes are carried out.

I suggest all individuals with a mental health disorder write an ADMHT, especially those with strong feelings about medication or other treatments.

For more information on this please visit http://ky.nami.org/admht.html.

Anna