Excluding autism or excluding everything? The problem of broad definitions in the England and Wales Draft Mental Health Bill

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Beazley, Peter (2024) Excluding autism or excluding everything? The problem of broad definitions in the England and Wales Draft Mental Health Bill. BJPsych Bulletin, 48 (3). pp. 187-191. ISSN 2056-4694

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Abstract

The recent Draft Mental Health Bill for England and Wales proposes changes to the Mental Health Act 1983 which will include, for the first time, a legal definition of autism. This article explores the specific potential issue that the definition, owing to its breadth, potentially encompasses a number of conditions other than autism, consequently leaving the definitionally dependent concept of 'psychiatric disorder' significantly narrowed in scope. The potential implications of this - primarily the concern that a range of other conditions and presentations could be unintentionally excluded from the scope of the civil powers in the Mental Health Act - are discussed.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: autism spectrum disorders,comorbidity,consent and capacity,in-patient treatment,psychiatry and law,psychiatry and mental health,sdg 16 - peace, justice and strong institutions,sdg 3 - good health and well-being ,/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/2700/2738
Faculty \ School: Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Norwich Medical School
UEA Research Groups: Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Centres > Mental Health and Social Care (fka Lifespan Health)
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Depositing User: LivePure Connector
Date Deposited: 13 Jun 2023 08:51
Last Modified: 02 Nov 2025 04:32
URI: https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/92368
DOI: 10.1192/bjb.2023.60

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