adults with incapacity Flashcards
who has capacity?
never assume
- Everybody should be treated equally
- Everyone should be assumed to have capacity unless proven otherwise
- Responsibility upon healthcare practitioners to assess capacity
- For those who lack capacity, care must be facilitated to ensure equality in the provision of care.
legislation
Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000
what is the adults with incapacity act
- A framework for safeguarding the welfare and managing the finances of adults who lack capacity due to mental illness, learning disability or a related condition, or an inability to communicate.
- The Act aims to protect people who lack capacity to make particular decisions, but also to support their involvement in making decisions about their own lives as far as they are able to do so.
defining capacity
3 aspects
the ability of power to
- receive information
- receive knowledge
- do or understand something
why is capacity important?
- Decision making - capacity is key to autonomy
- Everyone has the right to say what happens to their body
- Everyone also has the right to say what they don’t want to happen to their body
- In terms of healthcare, competent adults have the right to refuse treatment
- Failure to treat adults who do not have capacity may constitute negligence
what is incapacity?
Inability to enter into legally binding contracts
- legal definition in AWI act
Refers to adults
- “Adult” means a person who has attained the age of 16yrs or older
in AWI, incapable means incapable of (5)
- Acting
- Making decisions
- Communicating decisions
- Understanding decisions
- Retaining the memory of decisions
what makes amanda incapable
- Amanda is currently being treated as inpatient in a psychiatric unit due to an acute psychosis associated with her bipolar disorder.
- She believes that the post-crown inside her tooth is being used as a tracking device from the CIA.
- She wishes you to remove the tooth.
she is unable to act or make a decision currently
how is communication defined for AWI
A person CANNOT be considered to be lacking capacity because of a lack or deficiency in communication – if that lack or deficiency can be made good by human or mechanical aid”
- “There is an onus on involved personnel to ensure that the individual with a communication difficulty is supported to maximise their communication.”
In other words, If a patient cannot speak in order to communicate their decision
- Can they write it?
- If so, give them a pen & some paper
- If a patient cannot write or speak in order to communicate their decision
- can they sign or use gestures?
- If so, facilitate this for them…
- can they sign or use gestures?
how to aid adult communication
- Find out how the person communicates – ask!!!
- Check if they are wearing or have with them their normal aids
- Ensure a quiet, well lit environment
- Allow adequate time
- Use technology – loop systems, spelling boards, ipad etc
- Consider communication adjuncts
what part of AWI does john potentially fufil?
he has a dento-alveolar abscess
he has a learning difficulty
understanding decsisions
unable to understand the treatment needed to manage source of infection
if someone has dementia what part of AWI do they potentially fufil?
retaining memory of decision
e.g. unable to recall decision made in previous appointment
how to assess capacity
Decision or action specific
- NOT ‘all or nothing’
Consider ‘residual capacity’ – some not all
- Patients may be able to make some decisions for themselves, but may lack capacity to make other decisions
Capacity may fluctuate
Time needed to explain corresponds to complexity of decision - scale
to demonstrate capacity individuals should be able to
BMA 2003
- Understand in simple language what the treatment is, its purpose and nature and why it is being proposed
- Understand its principle benefits, risks and alternatives;
- Understand in broad terms what will be the consequences of not receiving the proposed treatment e.g. infection spread
- Retain the information long enough to use it and weigh it in the balance in order to arrive at a decision
(Scotland – “retain the memory of the decision”)
assessment of capacity should seek to determine if the patient (9)
- Is capable of making and communicating a choice
- Understands the nature of what is being asked & why
- Has memory abilities to allow them to retain information you have given
- Is aware of alternatives
- Is aware of risks & benefits involved
- is aware of personal relevance to them
- Is aware of the right to (and how to) refuse treatment
- Has ever previously expressed a view or opinion on the subject e.g. family member
- Is not under undue influence from you or anyone else
