Rethinking
Mental Health Laws: An Integrated Approach
In December 2007, Professor Bernadette McSherry commenced a prestigious five year Australian Research Council Federation Fellowship which will focus on developing a research program into mental health laws.
The main aim of this research program is to explore the role the law has and
should have in improving access to optimal mental health care and
promoting and maintaining good mental health. The program will bring
together international and Australian mental health experts from
a range of disciplines as well as consumer representatives to develop
model frameworks for both civil commitment laws for those with serious
mental illnesses and sentencing laws for mentally ill offenders.
These model frameworks will integrate theoretical and clinical approaches
for attaining the highest attainable standard of mental health care
and will put Australia in the forefront of the developing international
focus on reforming mental health laws. The research team have been
carrying out interviews with interested parties across Australia
and in New Zealand, Scotland,
England, Ireland and Canada.
A workshop on "Rethinking
Rights-Based Mental Health Laws" was held in May 2009 in Prato, Italy. Another workshop entitled “Managing High-Risk
Offenders: Policy and Practice” will be held in May 2010.
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