Reference no: EM133506569

1) Serious and persistent mental illness (SMI) is characterized by a socially perceived loss of capacity to make important decisions about treatment, activities of daily living, finances, etc. State law in the US has sought to balance the rights of individuals with mental illness and the perceived need to treat individuals with SMI.

a) Using Maryland (or some other state that you can provide the relevant details for) as an example, what conditions currently need to be met before the state can coerce an individual into treatment?

i) Do you think that this standard achieves a good balance between treatment need and personal liberty?

b) Discuss how outpatient civil commitment would change this balance.

i) Do you think outpatient civil commitment is a good idea or a bad idea, explain.

c) Discuss the tension between recovery and outpatient civil commitment.

i) Briefly define recovery and the recovery movement.

ii) Describe how consumer movements have changed mental health policy and affect these choices.

iii) Do you think our mental health system can accommodate both concepts like outpatient civil comment and remain recovery oriented?