Quebec psychiatrists group supports bill on forced hospitalizations for mentally ill

QUÉBEC — The association of Quebec’s psychiatrists says it supports a bill that would make it easier to forcibly hospitalize someone in a mental health crisis.

Existing law permits authorities to treat someone against their will only if their mental state poses a “grave and immediate danger” to themselves or others.

The bill would instead allow authorities to forcibly hospitalize people whose mental state presents a “situation where there is a danger” to themselves or others.

Claire Gamache, president of L’Association des médecins psychiatres du Québec, says the change is needed because many people experiencing mental illness are not aware of their condition, making clinical intervention difficult.