Section 57: Interpretation.

In this Act-
"certification" means the process of qualifying medical specialists through requirements and examinations set by the Board of the particular medical specialty so appointed or elected for that specific purpose by the registered members of the medical specialty association;
"carer" means a person who maintains a close personal relationship with the patient and manifests concern for his welfare;
"child" means a person under the age of 18 years as defined under section 277 of the Child's Right Act, No. 26, 2003;
"Court" means a competent Court;
"facility" means a public or private establishment, institution, building or place where persons receive mental health care, treatment, rehabilitative assistance, diagnostic or therapeutic interventions or other health services including but not limited to clinics, hospitals, psychiatric hospitals, community health and rehabilitation centres and faith-based establishments or traditional healing centres which provide mental health care services or treatments for persons with mental health conditions;
"least restrictive alternative" or "least restrictive environment" or "less restrictive option" means offering an option for treatment or a setting for treatment which-
(a) meets the person's treatment needs; and
(b) imposes the least restriction on the person's rights;
"long term stay" means admission to the ward of a facility for a period exceeding six weeks;
"legal representative" means a person charged by law with the duty of representing a person in any specified undertaking or of exercising specified rights on the behalf of a person with a mental health condition or a person appointed in writing by the person with a mental health condition to act on his or her behalf, provided that where the person is unable to exercise capacity, or otherwise fails to appoint a legal representative in writing, the legal representative shall be taken to be in the following order-
(a) the spouse, if any, unless permanently separated from the patient or has deserted or has been deserted by the patient;
(b) sons and daughters over the age of 18 years;
(c) either parent by mutual consent; and
(d) a person appointed by a Court to represent the patient;
"mental health" means a state of well-being in which every individual realises his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to contribute to his or her community;
"mental health conditions" means impairments, activity limitations and individual and participatory restrictions arising from diagnosable mental disorders which involve significant changes in thinking, emotion or behaviour and cause distress or problems in the interaction between the individual and his environment and include intellectual, psychosocial or cognitive disabilities;
"mental health professionals" means a person trained and certified to practice psychiatry;
"mental health workers" means trained volunteers and advocates engaged in mental health promotion and services under the supervision of the mental health professionals;
"mental or psychological incapacity" means the inability to-
(a) understand the information given concerning the nature of the disorder;
(b) understand the consequences that his or her decisions and actions have for his or her own life or health and for the life and health of others, which may be serious and irreversible;
(c) understand that treatment might mitigate or remedy the condition and that lack of treatment might aggravate it;
(d) understand the information about the nature of treatment proposed, including the means of treatment, its direct effects and its possible side effects; and
(e) effectively communicate with others regarding his or her condition and his or her consent to treatment or hospitalisation;
"Minister" means the Minister responsible for matters relating to health;
"patient" refers to a person receiving or utilising mental health care and treatment from a mental health care facility or clinic;
"physical restraint" includes immobilisation of a person using chains, shackles, handcuffs, ropes and other instruments;
"place of safety" means a shelter run by the government or an accredited organisation for persons requiring support and accommodation and does not include a prison, police cell or related facility;
"psychiatric emergencies" means conditions which may present a serious threat to a person's wellbeing or that of others requiring immediate psychiatric interventions such as in cases of attempted suicide, acute intoxication, severe depression, acute psychosis, or violent behavior; and
"psychosocial problem" means a condition that indicates the existence of disturbances in the individual's behavior, thoughts and feelings brought about by sudden, extreme or prolonged stressors in the physical or social environment;
"restraint" means the immobilisation of a person with a mental health condition using physical, mechanical or chemical means for the purpose of preventing harm to the person or others, administration of medication, or transfer to a place of seclusion or another facility;
"supported decision-making" means decision-making with support, arrangements and relationships which allow persons with mental health conditions to retain and exercise their decision-making capacity by choosing supporters to assist them make and communicate treatment and according decisions, and may include support by family members, accredited organisations, or professionals; and
"voluntary admission" means a person who goes to a facility for treatment and admission on his or her own accord, with or without referral.