Geneva, October 9 (Prensa Latina) International organizations today published new guidelines aimed at reforming countries’ legislation to prevent human rights violations and achieve higher quality mental health care.
The document “Mental health, human rights and legislation: guidelines and practices”, prepared jointly by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, highlights that negative practices in this area are very common.
Experts point out that many mental health services worldwide continue to resort to hospitalization and treatment without consent, unhealthy living conditions, physical violence and psychological abuse.
According to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, these new guidelines will help countries implement the necessary changes to ensure quality mental health care that ensures healing and respect for dignity
People.
To this end, they plan to train individuals to live full and healthy lives in their social circles.
Recommendations include incorporating a rights-based community approach to mental health care, including legislation that gradually replaces mental health facilities with community support systems and integrative services through subsidies, housing assistance and peer support networks.
Also, end coercive practices such as confinement without consent, coercive treatment, seclusion and restraint to respect the right of all people to decide on the care they receive and to make their own decisions about treatment.
Therefore, they propose laws that prevent coercion in mental health services and enshrine free and informed consent as the basis of all interventions in this area.
In addition, they advise on how to deal with the most complex and difficult cases through legislation and policies without resorting to coercive measures.
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