Experiences of being detained under the mental health act V1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Exploring experiences of being detained under the mental health act: a qualitative study
IRAS ID
270013
Contact name
Rebekah Moore
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Edinburgh
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 2 months, 1 days
Research summary
Inpatient wards are part of the mental health system in many countries. Many people in inpatient wards are there involuntarily; they have been detained (sectioned) under mental health laws. Some people who have been detained found it helpful and others found it distressing and traumatic. Many people who have mental health problems have experienced traumatic events. Some research suggests detention and the hospital experience may add to this trauma. Additionally, most people who are detained will have further engagement with mental health services and if someone has had a difficult experience, this may lead to poor engagement and treatment outcomes.
In Scotland, all services should be aiming to be trauma-informed. This means that hospital treatment, including detention should be experienced as safe, respectful of your history, and understanding that your reactions to circumstances could be influenced by adverse experiences. This should lead to more positive experiences of detention, but this has not been directly researched.
More research needs to be done to find out about people’s experiences of being detained.
This research aims to get an understanding of people’s experiences of detention, to discover what can make it a positive or negative experience and the impact on future engagement with mental health services. The research also aims to see if trauma-informed and other practices are experienced during detention.
Participants will be recruited through service user organisations and NHS wards. They will be invited to an interview which will be recorded, and data from this analysed. The interview will focus on the person’s detention experience but be flexible, able to follow the person’s story and what they find important.
It is hoped this research will help services provide better experiences for people, therefore decreasing the risk re-traumatisation and increasing people’s willingness to engage with services if they need further help.REC name
West of Scotland REC 3
REC reference
19/WS/0185
Date of REC Opinion
4 Dec 2019
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion