Capacity Flashcards
What 3 provisions are available (built into the MCA 2005) to aid decision making on behalf of vulnerable individuals who lack capacity?
1) Lasting Power of attorney (LPA)
2) independent MC advocates (IMCA)
3) Court of Protection
What’s a lasting power of attorney?
An individual legally appoints someone they trust (relative or friend) to make decisions on their behalf in the future if they lose capacity, bymaking a lasting power of attorney (LPA).
What decisions can a LPA make?
Where an individual should live, what care or treatment they should receive, decisions about their daily routine (food, activities, etc.).
If special permission has been given, an attorney can also make decisions about life-saving treatment.
What is an independent Mental Capacity Advocate (IMCA)?
IMCAs are used when an individual lacks the capacity to make a specific important decision, when there is no-one independent of services (e.g. a family member or friend) appropriate to represent the individual lacking capacity.
What can the IMCA do?
IMCAs support and represent the individual who lacks capacity, ensuring the Mental Capacity Act, 2005 is followed.
What is the court of protection?
The Court of Protection is a court that if applied to, can make decisions about an individual’s health, welfare, finances and property under the Mental Capacity Act 2005.
What decisions can the court rule on?
- Whether an individual has capacity to make a decision,
- whether a decision is in an individual’s best interests,
- removing an attorney under a lasting power of attorney.
Always under the best interests of patient
Changes to the DNCPR guidance?
- the decision to not tell a patient about a can no longer be based on the fact that telling them would cause “distress”.
- Only if discussing a DNACPR order would cause the patient “physical or psychological harm”, can doctors justify not discussing it.
All other circumstances, must communicate DNACPR to patient and relatives
