Question

: Scott is a 32-year-old man admitted to an acute psychiatric hospital for suicidal ideation in the setting of noncompliance with his psychotropic medications. Scott voluntarily presented to the hospital, knowing from many years of living with his chronic schizophrenia that he was becoming increasingly psychotic. Scott is refusing to take the recommended psychotropic medications that the weekend staff prescribed. He has begun yelling and throwing medication cups back to the nurses stating, "You guys know you can't make me take this junk! This is what has made me crazy in the first place. Get the heck out of here before I call my lawyer." Scott's mental status has been fluctuating greatly, and you arrive to care for him. The medical team asks you to try to convince him to "be compliant" and take some medications to help get his condition back under control. Can you ethically justify medicating Scott against his will? If so, explain.

Answer 1

Two situations when you medicate a patient against their will are when the judge says you can, only during the duration of the hospital stay and in an emergency the patient have the right to withdraw. The right to give medicine even after the previous consent. The patient who is in an involuntary admission have the right to refuse medicine, except it has an order. The patient should be informed about their treatment always. Just because someone is psychotic it doesn't mean that they are incompetent or unable to understand.