The Mental Health Act: Form 1 – 4

You may find yourself in the Emergency Department after things escalated at home. As a parent or guardian you want what is best for your child, but your child might not recognize that they need help. After being assessed in the Emergency Department they may be cleared to go home. If your child meets the criteria listed on Form 1, you may ask your to doctor complete Form 1. 

Form 1

This is a tool to get a person with serious mental health challenges to undergo a Psychiatric Assessment. It is a form that is filled out by a doctor, in the hospital or community, who can confirm that the patient meets all the criteria outlined on the form. The criteria listed on Form 1 will help you decide whether your loved one meets the criteria to be admitted against his or her will and become an involuntary patient.  It is also possible for a physician to complete a Form 1 for a patient they assessed within seven days. An involuntary patient can only be held up to 72 hours (the person can be detained for a little as three hours and only up to 72 hours). Click here to download Form 1.

Once Form 1 is completed there is a chance, based on ongoing assessments, that the patient can be held for longer than 72 hours. For this to happen Form 3 and Form 4 would need to be completed. 

Form 2

A Form 2 is an “Order for Examination”, signed by the Justice of the Peace. It is an order for an assessment by a doctor. A Form 2 is based on sworn statements from a family member or someone who closely knows your loved one. Once you get the Form 2, it allows the police to bring your loved one to the hospital for an assessment. This usually happens within the hospital emergency department. 

Form 3

The patient will have a psychiatric assessment at which point the patient will stay voluntarily, be free to go, or be made an involuntary patient on a Form 3, which is called a Certificate of Involuntary Admission. This allows the facility to hold the involuntary patient for up to two more weeks.

Form 4

After that, if the doctor thinks they should still stay and they don’t want to, the doctor can sign a Form 4, which is called a Certificate of Renewal. The second time, the involuntary patient can be held up to two more months. After that, every Form 4 means the involuntary patient can be held in the facility for up to three more months.