REFUSING THE RIGHT TO REFUSE: COERCED TREATMENT OF MENTALLY DISORDERED PERSONS

By Grant Morris Under the doctrine of informed consent, if a person is competent to understand the risks, benefits, and alternatives to proposed treatment, that person is allowed to decide whether to accept or reject the proposed treatment. Informed consent is not required if the person is incompetent or if an emergency arises that necessitates treatment to save the person's life. Nevertheless, various devices are used to deny mentally disordered persons their right to refuse treatment even when they are competent decision makers and even when no emergency exists. For example, some courts substitute a "limited due process" model for a "full due process model," allowing doctors to decide whether the proposed treatment is appropriate, rather than requiring a court's determination of the patient's competence to withhold consent. Some states substitute the decision to involuntarily commit the patient, or a decision to appoint a guardian or conservator to assist the patient, for the require