Mental Capacity Matters with Alex Ruck Keene

In this "in conversation with" Akiko Hart , Chief Executive of the National Survivor Users Network, we discuss the challenges of responding to reform proposals in relation to mental health law and practice as a membership organisation, and also get into some of the thorny issues around mental health reform more generally.   For more see www.mentalcapacitylawandpolicy.org.uk .

In this “in conversation with”  Dr Chris Danbury , we discuss the impact of the Supreme Court decision in Aintree v James, the concept of futility, and mediation in clinical negligence and serious medical treatment cases. For more, see www.mentalcapacitylawandpolicy.org.uk. For the original video, see here .

In this “in conversation with” Helen Gilburt at the King’s Fund, we discuss the report she has authored (February 2021) on Understanding clinical decision-making at the interface of the Mental Health Act (1983) and the Mental Capacity Act (2005), most easily accessed by this blog  here . For more, see www.mentalcapacitylawandpolicy.org.uk. For the original video, see here .

In this shedinar, I look at the MCA and 16/17 year olds. This is a complicated area, so this can serve only as an overview. As I note in the video, the law in this area is evolving, and this represents the position as at the end of January 2021.  I will seek to do an updated shedinar in due course to keep abreast of the position. For more, see www.mentalcapacitylawandpolicy.org...

In this “in conversation with” Dr Nuala Kane, Nuala discusses the work that she has been leading on under the umbrella of the Mental Health and Justice Project developing a typology of capacity rationales, how this might help determinations be more transparent, and to target support. For more, see www.mentalcapacitylawandpolicy.org.uk. For the original video, see here .

This “in conversation with” is, in part, shameless self-promotion, to mark the publication of the second edition of  Law and Ethics in Intensive Care  (Oxford University Press, £39.99), which I co-edited with Chris Danbury, Chris Newdick and Carl Waldmann. It is also, however, hopefully also a useful discussion between two lawyers (Chris Newdick and I) and two in...

In this “in conversation with” the psychiatrist and bioethicist  Dr Scott Kim , Scott gives a ‘critical friend’ perspective from the US upon the MCA, and we delve into some of the consequences of approaching best interests from the perspective of standing in the shoes of the person. For more, see www.mentalcapacitylawandpolicy.org.uk. For the original video, see here .

In this “in conversation with”  Dr Steve Fleming , a cognitive neuroscientist and psychologist, we dig into the concept of metacognition and how work being done in the lab may start to shed light on the contested concepts of insight and decision-making capacity. For more, see www.mentalcapacitylawandpolicy.org.uk. For the original video, see here .

This episode is a conversation with the Revd Dr Geoff Morgan, a hospital chaplain and former IMCA, in which we discuss spirituality, advocacy, the MCA and the difference small things can make.  For more, see www.mentalcapacitylawandpolicy.org.uk.  For the original video, see here . Boring but necessary caveat, nothing here constitutes legal advice.

In this “in conversation with” Emma Overton, Policy and Practice Development Lead at North East Lincolnshire CCG, we discuss commissioning, joined up thinking, and learning lessons from cases where steps have not been taken to consider how to enable medical treatment to be delivered to those with impaired decision-making capacity.   For more, see  mentalcapacitylawandpolicy.org...

In this "in conversation with" George Szmukler, we discuss the idea of fusion law - i.e. a law which would replace separate mental health and mental capacity legislation with legislation based solely upon mental capacity and best interests. For more, see  mentalcapacitylawandpolicy.org.uk . For the original video, see here . Boring but necessary caveat, nothing here constitutes legal advice.

In this "in conversation with" Professor Wayne Martin, we dig into the concept of 'insight' and tease out how it might relate to mental capacity, drawing upon ongoing work that he is doing as part of the Wellcome-funded Mental Health and Justice Project (www.mhj.org.uk). For more, see www.mentalcapacitylawandpolicy.org.uk. For the original video see here . Boring but necessary caveat, nothing here...

In this ‘in conversation’ with  Dr Tania Gergel , we think about what philosophy can bring to thinking about mental capacity, have a chewy discussion about the (mis)use of the presumption of capacity and start getting into advance decision making and problems of personhood. For more, see www.mentalcapacitylawandpolicy.org.uk. For the original video, see here .

In this episode, Dr Lade Smith CBE and I discuss the ways in which capacity assessments under the MCA do and do not capture the cultural aspects of capacity, and the consequences for discrimination. For the original video, see here . Boring but necessary caveat, nothing constitutes legal advice.

In this episode, Dr Camilla Parker and I discuss the complexities of the law relating to deprivation of liberty in this area, and go through the practice guidance we have produced for Research in Practice. For the original video, see here .

An episode looking at the fundamentals of capacity and capacity assessment. For the original video with slides, see here .

An episode looking at the fundamentals of best interests, assessment and determination. For the original video with slides, see here . Boring but necessary caveat: nothing here constitutes legal advice.

An episode looking at the fundamentals of deprivation of liberty - how to identify one, and what to do where one has arisen. For the original video with slides, see here .

A short introduction to the Court of Protection: what is it, what does it do, how does it do it, and when to go to it. For the original video with slides, see here .

In this episode, I take on the interface between the Mental Health Act 1983 and the Mental Capacity Act 2005, looking at the position both inside and outside hospital. For the original video with slides, see here .

A short introduction to DNAPCR and advance care planning, in the hopes that it will assist people to get the law right in this area. For the original video with slides, see here .

In this episode, I look at the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court as it relates to adults. This is a complicated area and I concentrate, in particular, on the situation where the person is at risk from others. For more guidance, and further discussion of the situation where the inherent jurisdiction might be considered where the sole risk appears to be that from the person themselves, see our...

In the latest ‘in conversation with’, I talk to Lorraine Currie about her twin perspectives on the Mental Capacity Act 2005, as a social worker and MCA lead on the one hand, and, on the other, as a builder of invisible scaffolding for her daughter Grace, who has an acquired brain injury. For the original video, see here .

In this conversation, I ask Dr Lucy Series about her Wellcome funded research, and we discuss, in particular, the long and complex history of confinement, and why Cheshire West may be a case of be careful what you wish for. The original video can be found here .

In the latest ‘in conversation with’, Dr Lucy Stephenson and I discuss the Wellcome-funded PACT project to develop advance decision-making tools for people living with bipolar disorder.  For the original video, see here .