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Best interests, dementia and the Mental Capacity Act (2005)

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Hope, R. A., Slowther, Anne and Eccles, J.. (2009) Best interests, dementia and the Mental Capacity Act (2005). Journal of Medical Ethics, 35 (12). pp. 733-738. ISSN 0306-6800

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/jme.2009.030783

Abstract

The Mental Capacity Act (2005) is an impressive piece of
legislation that deserves serious ethical attention, but
much of the commentary on the Act has focussed on its
legal and practical implications rather than the underlying
ethical concepts. This paper examines the approach that
the Act takes to best interests. The Act does not provide
an account of the underlying concept of best interests.
Instead it lists factors that must be considered in
determining best interests, and the Code of Practice to
the Act states that this list is incomplete. This paper
argues that this general approach is correct, contrary to
some accounts of best interests. The checklist includes
items that are unhelpful. Furthermore, neither the Act nor
its Code of Practice provides sufficient guidance to carers
faced with difficult decisions concerning best interests.
This paper suggests ways in which the checklist can be
developed and discusses cases that could be used in an
updated Code of Practice.

Item Type:

Journal Article

Subjects:

R Medicine > RC Internal medicine

Divisions:

Faculty of Medicine > Warwick Medical School > Health Sciences
Faculty of Medicine > Warwick Medical School > Health Sciences > Social Science & Systems in Health (SSSH)
Faculty of Medicine > Warwick Medical School

Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):

Psychiatric ethics, Dementia -- Moral and ethical aspects, Mental Capacity Act 2005

Journal or Publication Title:

Journal of Medical Ethics

Publisher:

BMJ Group

ISSN:

0306-6800

Official Date:

December 2009

Dates:

Date	Event
December 2009	Published
17 August 2009	Accepted
26 April 2009	Submitted

Volume:

Number:

Number of Pages:

Page Range:

pp. 733-738

Identification Number:

10.1136/jme.2009.030783

Status:

Peer Reviewed

Publication Status:

Published

Access rights to Published version:

Open Access

Adapted As:

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