RELATED LAWS

IN MENTAL
HEALTH
 CONTENTS
A Philippine Mental health Law (RA No. 11036)

B Other Laws and Ethical Context of Psychiatric Mental Health

Nursing
1.Patient's Bill of Rights
2.Magna Carta of Women
3.Magna Carta of Disabled Person
4.Magna Carta of Health Workers
C Ethico- Legal Considerations
5. Legal Psychiatric Nursing
Issues 2. Torts
3. Commitment Issues
4. Independent and Collaborative Interventions that protect
Philippine Mental
Health Law
REPUBLIC ACT No. 11036

An Act Establishing a National Mental Health Policy for

the Purpose of enhancing the Delivery of Integrated Mental
Health Services, Promoting and Protecting the Rights of
Persons Utilizing Psychosocial Health Services,
Appropriating Funds Therefor and Other Purposes
OTHER LAWS AND
ETHICAL CONTEXT OF
PSYCHIATRIC MENTAL
HEALTH NURSING
Patients Bill of Rights
Magna Carta of
Women
Magna Carta of Disabled
Person Magna Carta of Health
Workers
THE RIGHT OF
THE
PATIENTS
1. Right to Appropriate Medical
Care and Humane Treatment
The patient has the right to appropriate
health and medical care of good
quality. In the course of such, his
human dignity, convictions, integrity,
individual needs and culture shall be
respected.
2. Right to Informed
Consent
The patient has a right to a clear, truthful and
substantial explanation, in a manner and
language understandable to the patient, of all
proposed procedures, whether
preventive, diagnostic, curative,
therapeutic, wherein the person who
rehabilitative or
perform the said procedure shall provide will
his name and credentials to the
patient, possibilities of any risk of mortality or
serious side effects, problems related to
recuperation, and probability of success and
reasonable risks involved.
 3. Right to Privacy and
Confidentiality
The privacy of the patients must be assured at all stages of
his treatment. The patient has the right to be free from
unwarranted public exposure, except in the following
cases:
a) when his mental or physical condition is in controversy and
the appropriate court, in its discretion, order him to submit to
a physical or mental examination by a physician;

b) when the public health and safety so demand; and

c) when the patient waives this right in writing.

4. Right to
Information
In the course of his/her treatment and
hospital care, the patient or his/her legal
guardian has a right to be informed of the
result of the evaluation of the nature and
extent of his/her disease, any other
additional or further contemplated medical
treatment on surgical procedure or
procedures, including any other additional
medicines to be administered and their
generic counterpart.
5. The Right to Choose Health Care
Provider and Facility
The patient is free to choose the health care
provider to serve him as well as the facility
except when he is under the care of a
service facility or when public health and
safety so demands or when the patient
expressly waives this right in writing.
The patient has the right to discuss his
condition with a consultant specialist, at the
patient's request and expense.
6. Right to Self-
Determination
The patient has the right to avail himself/herself of any
recommended diagnostic and treatment procedures.
Any person of legal age and of sound mind may make
an advance written directive for physicians to
administer terminal care when he/she suffers from
the terminal phase of a terminal illness: Provided That
a) he is informed of the medical consequences of his choice;

b) he releases those involved in his care from any obligation

relative to the consequences of his decision;

c) his decision will not prejudice public health and safety.

7. Right to Religious Belief

The patient has the right to refuse

medical treatment or procedures which
may be contrary to his religious beliefs,
subject to the limitations described in the
preceding subsection: Provided, That
such a right shall not be imposed by
parents upon their children who have
not reached the legal age in a life
threatening situation as determined by
the attending physician or the medical
director of the facility.
 8. Right to Medical
Records
The patient is entitled to a summary of his
medical history and condition. He has
the right to view the contents of his
medical records, except psychiatric notes
and other incriminatory information
obtained about third parties, with the
attending physician explaining contents
thereof.
9. Right to Leave

The patient has the right to leave hospital or any other health
care institution regardless of his physical condition: Provided.
That a) he/she is informed of the medical consequences of
his/her decision b) he/she releases those involved in his/her care
from any obligation relative to the consequences of his
decision; c) his/her decision will not prejudice public health and
safety.
10. Right to Refuse Participation In
Medical Research
The patient has the right to be
advised if the health care provider
plans to involve him in medical
research, including but not limited
to human experimentation which
may be performed only with the
written informed consent of the
patient.
11. Right to Correspondence and
Receive to
Visitors
The patient has the right
communicate to with relatives
other persons and to
andreceive
visitors
subject to reasonable limits
prescribed by the and
regulations rules of the care
institution. health
12. Right to Express Grievances

The patient has the right to

express
complaints and grievances
the care about and services
without fear of discrimination or
received
reprisal and to know about the
disposition of such complaints.Such
a system shall afford all parties
concerned with the opportunity to
settle amicably all grievances.
13. Right to be Informed of His Rights
and Obligations as a Patient

Every person has the right to be

informed of his rights and
obligations as a patient. Declared
in this Act Such rights and
obligations of patients shall be
posted in a bulletin board
conspicuously placed in a health
care institution.
Magna Carta of
Women
(RepubLic Act No. 9710)
a comprehensive women’s human rights
law that seeks to eliminate
discrimination against women by
recognizing, protecting, fulfilling and
promoting the rights of Filipino
women, especially those in the
marginalized sectors.
Rule II, Section7- Definition of
“Marginalized” refers to the basic, disadvantaged,
Terms
or vulnerable persons or groups who are mostly living
in poverty and have little or no access to land and
other resources, basic social and economic services
such as health care, education, water and sanitation,
employment and livelihood opportunities, housing,
social security, physical infrastructure, and the justice
system.
Includes: Small farmers and rural workers, Fisherfolk,
Urban poor, Workers in the formal economy, Workers
in the informal economy, Migrant workers, Indigenous
Peoples, Moro, Children, Senior citizens, Persons with
ECONOMIC RIGHTS/POWER
Food Security and Productive
Resources Right to Decent Work
Right to Livelihood, Credit, Capital and
Technology Social Protection
Right to Education and Training (for migrant workers) DOLE
and other concerned agency

POLITICAL PARTICIPATION/VOICE
Protection from Violence
Participation and
Representation
Right to Participation and
SOCIAL/LEGAL RIGHTS
Protection from Violence
Equal Treatment Before the Law
Equal Access and Elimination of Discrimination
Education, Scholarships, and in
Training Special Leave Benefits for
Women Women’s Right to Health
Magna Carta of
Disabled
Republic Act No. 7277
Person
Enacted for the primary reason
that persons with disabilities have the
same rights as other people.
RA 9442 – An Act Amending
Republic Act No. 7277
This Act shall covers all disabled persons and, to the
extend herein provided, departments, offices and
agencies of the National Government or non-
government organization involved in the attainment of
the objectives of this Act.

(SEC. 4) DISABLED PERSONS – those suffering

from restriction of different abilities, as a result of a
mental, physical or sensory impairment, to perform an
activity in the manner or within the range considered
normal for a human being
RIGHTS AND PRIVILEGES
OF DISABLED PERSONS
Chapter 1– Employment
Chapter 2– Education
Chapter 3– Health
Chapter 4– Auxiliary Social
Services Chapter 5 –
Telecommunications Chapter 6 –
Accessibility
Chapter 7 – Political and Civil
Rights
Chapter III-
HEALTH
SEC. 19. Centers. –
Rehabilitation of Health The shall
Department
medical rehabilitation establish
centers
in
government provincial hospitals, and shall
include in its annual appropriation the
necessary funds for the operation of such
centers.
The Department of Health shall formulate
and implement a program to enable
marginalized disabled persons to avail of
free rehabilitation services in government
hospitals
Chapter III-
SEC.
HEALTH 20. Health Services. – The State shall protect
and promote the right to health of disabled persons and
shall adopt an integrated and comprehensive approach to
their health development which shall make essential health
services available to them at affordable cost.
The National Government shall provide an integrated
health service for disabled persons which shall include, but not
limited to, the following:
Prevention disability through immunization, nutrition,
of protection and preservation, geneti
counseling; and early
environmental and detection of disability c and
timely intervention to arrest disabling condition; and medical
treatment and rehabilitation.
CHAPTER 8- OTHER
PRIVILEGES AND
INCENTIVES
At least 20% discount
On medical and dental services including
diagnostic and laboratory fees, and professional fees
of attending doctors in all private hospitals and
medical facilities, in accordance with the rules and
regulations to be issued by the DOH, in coordination
with PHILHEALTH
 MAGNA CARTA OF
HEALTH WORKERS
Republic Act 7305

Section 3.
Definition: “Health workers” shall
mean:
Persons who are engaged in health
and health-related
Persons employedwork in hospitals,
sanitaria, all health andother
centers
health-related establishments owned
and operated by thegovernment or its
political subdivision
SECTION 2 -DECLARATION POLICY:

AIMS:
To promote and improve the social
and economic well being
To develop their skills and capabilities
To encourage those who have
proper qualifications to remain in government
service.
Section 6. Transfer / Geographical Reassignment
of Public Health Workers

• Transfer–one position to another which is of equivalent

rank, level or salary
• Geographical reassignment–transfer to another
geographical location
• No transfer/reassignment 3 months before any local

or national elections; and necessary expenses

of transfer/reassignment of the PHW and his
immediate family shall be paid for by the government
Section 13-Duties and Obligation Discharge his duty
humanely Perform his duty with utmost respect for life
Exercise his function without discrimination.
Section 15- Normal Hours of work 8
hours/week Section 18- Night Shit
differential
10% of his regular wage
10% of his regular wage+ regular wage
overtime pay
Section 21-Hazard allowance
25% basic salary for salary grade
 ETHICO LEGAL
CONSIDERATIONS
 Legal
Psychiatric
Theoretical Perspectives
Nursing
Utilitarianism – an ethical Issues
theory that promotes action based on the
end result that produces the most good (happiness) for the most
people
Kantianism – suggests that decisions and actions are bound by a sense
of
duty
Christian ethics – emphasize doing unto others as you would have
them do unto you
Natural law theories – refer to doing good and avoiding evil.
Human knowledge of the difference between good and evil directs
decision making
 Ethical Principles
Autonomy - emphasizes the status of persons as autonomous moral
agents whose rights to determine their destinies should always be
respected.
Beneficence - refers to one’s duty to benefit or promote the good of
others.
Nonmaleficence - is abstaining from negative acts toward another,
includes acting carefully to avoid harm.
Justice - is a principle based on the notion of a hypothetical social
contract between free, equal, and rational persons. The concept of
justice reflects a duty to treat all individuals equally and fairly.
Veracity - is a principle that refers to one’s duty to always be
 TORT
Civil law includes torts.
French equivalent of the English word ‘wrong’,
and of the Roman Law term ‘delict’
derived from the Latin term ‘tortum’, twisted,
and implies conduct which is twisted or tortious.
Torts are wrongful acts that cause someone to
suffer harm—in nursing, this can be an action or
inaction by a nurse that causes a patient harm.
Two types of torts
are:
1.INTENTIONAL TORTS
2.UNINTENTIONAL
TORTS
 Intentional Torts
Assault.
Assault is a threat made against a person that makes
them fearful.

Battery.
•Battery. In nursing torts, battery is the touching of a
patient, without consent, that causes harm.
*A before B: Assault (threat) before Battery (harm). *
 Intentional Torts

False Imprisonment.
act of keeping someone somewhere against their
will when they should otherwise be free to go. The
tort of false imprisonment denies a patient their
autonomy; patients have the right to leave even
when it's against medical advice.
 Intentional Torts
Defamation of Character.
making derogatory statements about a person that
harms their reputation or character within a
community or has the potential to harm their
reputation or character within that community. It's
important to note that it does not have to be proved
that the victim's reputation was harmed, just that the
statements could have potentially harmed their
reputation.
 Two kinds of
1.Slander
defamation
Slander is any defamation of character that is
spoken.

2. Libel
Libel is any defamation of character that is written.
 Intentional
Torts
Privacy and Confidentiality right of an individual to have
personal, identifiable medical information, referred to as
protected health information, kept private.
Protected Health Information (PHI) is defined as
individually identifiable health information, including
demographic data, that relates to the individual’s past,
present, or future physical or mental health or condition;
the provision of health care to the individual; and the past,
present, or future payment for the provision of health care
to the individual.
 Intentional Torts

Fraud.
Fraud is an intentional tort that occurs when an
individual is deceived for personal gain.
A nurse may be charged with fraud for documenting
interventions not performed or for altering
documentation to cover up an error.
 Unintentional
Negligence.
Torts
In nursing, negligence is defined as a failure to provide care that a reasonably prudent

person would have. Reasonably prudent means someone of sound mind and good

reasoning capabilities. It is the failure to meet accepted standards of nursing competence

and nursing scope of practice

Malpractice.

Malpractice is the specific term for negligence by a professional, like a registered nurse.

Malpractice is a more specific term than negligence as it speaks to the agent (actor) in the situation.

• The action that caused the patient harm was carried out with intent. In this case, the healthcare

professional was aware of the potential consequences of their actions but still performed them.
 Unintentional
Torts
All the following elements must be established in a court
of law to prove malpractice:
Duty: A nurse-client relationship exists.
Breach: The standard of care was not met, and harm
was a foreseeable consequence of the action or
inaction.
Cause: Injury was caused by the nurse’s breach.
Harm: Injury resulted in damages.
 Unintentional
Abandonment
Torts
. desertion of a patient by anyone who has taken
responsibility for their care. For example, if you were
the nurse on duty, assigned to a patient, and you just
decided to abruptly go home without handing over
care to anybody else, that would be abandonment.
COMMITMENT ISSUES
Voluntary vs. Involuntary
Commitment consider involuntary
The
commitmentemergency physician
in patients with a high "danger potential"
should
(whether suicidal or homicidal) despite the patient’s
willingness to be admitted.
Another pitfall of voluntary admission regards the issues of
consent and competence. Only a competent patient may give
consent for voluntary admission. In one case, the Court ruled
that a mentally ill man was unable to give informed consent
and could sue state officials who committed him to a state
hospital using voluntary commitment procedures.
COMMITMENT ISSUES
Conservatorship and Guardianship
The appointment of a conservator or legal guardian is
a separate process from civil commitment.
People who are gravely disabled; are found to be
incompetent; cannot provide food, clothing, and
shelter for themselves even when resources exist; and
cannot act in their own best interests may require
appointment of a conservator or legal guardian.
COMMITMENT ISSUES
Patient Searches
The ED staff is at high risk for assault, and up to 30% of
violent encounters in the ED involve weapons. If the
physician determines that a patient is suicidal or
potentially violent, security officers should search the
patient and remove all dangerous objects.
All committed patients should be searched, because it is
difficult to predict who may be carrying a weapon.
COMMITMENT ISSUES
Patient Restraint
To protect the patient as well as staff and visitors,
security personnel should restrain the dangerous patient
or designate an officer to be a "sitter."
For this reason, involuntarily committed patients should
be treated in a locked unit.
COMMITMENT ISSUES
Seclusion
Seclusion is the involuntary confinement of a person in a
specially constructed, locked room equipped with a
security window or camera for direct visual monitoring.
Seclusion decreases stimulation, protects others from
the client, prevents property destruction, and provides
privacy for the client.
The goal is to give the client the opportunity to regain
physical and emotional self-control.
COMMITMENT ISSUES
Decision Making
The decision to commit an individual patient is not
always simple.
The physician must weigh multiple factors and
consider the danger to self and others, history of
psychiatric illness, degree of disability, and
impulsiveness.
 INDEPENDENT AND
COLLABORATIVE
INTERVENTIONS
THAT PROTECTS THE
CLIEN'S HEALTH
CARE RIGHTS
INDEPENDENT
NURSING
INTERVENTIONS
Any intervention that the nurse can
independently provide without
obtaining a prescription is
considered an independent nursing
intervention.
DEPENDENT
NURSING
INTERVENTIONS
Require a prescription before they
can be performed. Prescriptions are
orders, interventions, remedies, or
treatments ordered or directed by
an authorized primary health care
provider.
COLLABORATIVE
NURSING
INTERVENTIONS
Actions that the nurse carries out in collaboration
with other health team members, such as
social workers, respiratory therapists, physical
physicians,
therapists, occupational therapists. These
actions
and are developed in consultation with
other health care professionals and incorporate
their professional viewpoint.
 THANK YOU
FOR LISTENING!
-END-
REFERENCES:
fronlineer. (2020, May 22). Legal Issues in Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing. Emergency
Room. https://frontlineer.com/legal-issues-in-psychiatric-mental-health-nursing/
Patients Rights. (n.d.). Samch.doh.gov.ph. https://samch.doh.gov.ph/index.php/patients- and-
visitors-corner/patients-rights#:~:text=The%20patient%20has%20the%20right
MAGNA CARTA OF WOMEN RA RA RA RA RA IMPLEMENTING RULES AND REGULATIONS. (n.d.).
Retrieved January 12, 2023, from https://cws.up.edu.ph/wp-content/uploads/RA-9710-
Magna-Carta-of-Women.pdf?fbclid=IwAR31pSZhA7BQbenT9Njb-
bRX3Iyx_FkkRToUr_Sy82Fmz3fV-_BHsvELW7o
Republic Act No. 11036 | GOVPH. (2018, June 20). Official Gazette of the Republic of the
Philippines. https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/2018/06/20/republic-act-no-11036/
RA 9442 – An Act Amending Republic Act No. 7277, Otherwise Known As The “Magna Carta For
Disabled Persons, And For Other Purposes.” (n.d.). National Council on Disability Affairs.
https://www.ncda.gov.ph/disability-laws/republic-acts/republic-act-9442/