Whether or Not to Prosecute Someone with a Mental Illness
Guest post by Marie Miguel, writing and research expert with BetterHelp.comMental illness affects one in five people in the United States and one in 25 of them are serious mental illnesses. With so many that have mental health conditions, we need even more health care workers to take care of them. We need those nurses, doctors, and other healthcare professionals to care for those who cannot take care of themselves. Many of these people do not have anyone who can take care of them at home, or they are just too sick to be cared for by a layperson, no matter how much they want to be there for them. That’s why it is on healthcare professionals to do this important work.
You Just Want to Help People
Maybe you grew up always wanting to be a healthcare professional in order to help people and take care of them. You spend all those years working toward schooling and certifications to become the best you can be, and take your licensure tests and pass them with flying colors. Now, you’ve finally made it and are taking care of people like you have wanted to do since you can remember. Then you realize that even though you are supposed to take care of these patients, there may not be as much support to back you up if you get hurt – not in a workplace accident, but instead, by one of your patients.Like a War Zone
Some days are better than others, and there are those days when you question your career path or even fear for your life. You may get slapped, punched, verbally abused, and / or threatened with death threats. It may feel like you are more of a police officer or soldier at war, but you are simply trying to help people as a healthcare professional. Whether you work in a nursing home, emergency room, or psychiatric ward with mentally-ill patients, there are going to be times that they act unpredictably, and you can get hurt. But what are the laws to protect you in these different cases of on-the-job abuse? When do they apply? Are you protected only if you have serious bodily harm? What if you are providing medical care outside of a medical facility? These different scenarios can be confusing.Protecting Those Who Protect Others
Most patients do not intend to hurt you. They may be in a lot of pain, or have a mental condition that confuses them and makes them unable to regulate their emotions, actions, or both. That’s not to say that there aren’t those who really do want to hurt you, but they are few and far between, luckily. Whether your patients intend to do it or not, what are your protections from getting hurt on the job by your patients?Is it Their Fault?
Less than 30% of medical personnel who are abused by their patients ever report their abuse, but the number of reports is still alarmingly high, as 75 of every 25,000 assaults in the workplace are medical professionals. Every year, more than two million people with serious mental illnesses are put in jail. As a healthcare professional, how can you know whether the patient is capable of being held responsible for their actions and able to be prosecuted? Most times, unless you are a psychologist or psychiatrist, you are not really able to make that decision. That is when it is time to call in a mental health care expert. Even the patient who seems quite docile and “normal” can have a mental illness without you knowing about it. This is especially true if this is a patient that is new to you.Checking Their Records
A patient who is abusive or violent toward you is likely to have a record of being abusive or violent in the past. Getting their records and talking to people that have provided care for them in the past can often help you to determine whether they need mental health treatment or a police escort. Patients who seem quite “normal” one moment and then harm someone for seemingly no reason is usually suffering from some type of mental health disorder.Symptoms of Different Mental Illnesses
An example of a common mental health diagnosis for patients that may be more likely to cause harm to others around them is bipolar disorder, and there are several types. Those that are diagnosed as having Bipolar I Disorder have at least a week of manic symptoms, alternating with at least two weeks of depressive episodes. Those with Bipolar II also have the depressive symptoms, but not as marked or intense manic episodes as those with Bipolar I.If you have a patient who has a history of being full of energy and feeling like they’re on top of the world one day, and then has periods of sadness and not wanting to get out of bed on other days, you may need to have them evaluated by a mental health care professional, if they haven’t been previously.
Talk to a Professional
Many medical professionals and lawmakers are trying to pass laws to make it a felony for patients to harm those who are trying to take care of them, although these may not cover those who have mental illnesses. If you have a mental disability, you need medical treatment, not jail time, in most cases. But sometimes that is not possible.If you are a caregiver who is in need of mental health support for yourself due to what you have been facing in your workplace, or have other personal issues where you could benefit from a mental health care professional’s expert opinion, consider contacting www.betterhelp.com for help today. You don’t need an appointment. In fact, you don’t even have to leave your home.
Marie Miguel has been a writing and research expert for nearly a decade, covering a variety of health- related topics. Currently, she is contributing to the expansion and growth of a free online mental health resource with BetterHelp.com. With an interest and dedication to addressing stigmas associated with mental health, she continues to specifically target subjects related to anxiety and depression.
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