With an amendment on the administration of ECT to those involuntarily admitted to psychiatric hospitals due in the Dáil this week, Prof Brendan Kelly stresses that impaired mental capacity should never be an excuse for denying treatment.
Due to the “sensitive nature of the data and the small numbers involved, which may make individuals identifiable”, a breakdown of patients administered electro-convulsive therapy (ECT) without consent in each approved centre in each year is not published by the Mental Health Commission (MHC), it has emerged.
Dear Editor, It is with some trepidation that I venture an opinion on the controversial and misunderstood subject of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), but I feel I must challenge some of the ideas communicated in last week’s IMT article, ‘Continuing decline in ECT welcome, but more needed’ (IMT, March 21, 2014).
By Pat Kelly.
Irish Medical Times Medical News for Healthcare Professionals