ME-ALLIANCE LEGAL UPDATE
Federal Law No. (10) of 2023 Concerning Mental Health in the United Arab Emirates
This Law is issued to replace Federal Law No. (28) of 1981 Concerning the Detention and Treatment of Mentally Ill Patients, establishing a modern and advanced framework to protect psychiatric patients and to ensure the quality of mental health care.
🎯 Objectives
According to Article (2), the Law aims to:
✔️Regulate the relationship between psychiatric patients and the entities dealing with them.
✔️Ensure the provision of necessary health care in accordance with the highest standards.
✔️Protect and preserve the rights and dignity of psychiatric patients.
✔️Reduce the adverse impacts of mental disorders on individuals, families, and society.
✔️Promote the integration of psychiatric patients into the community.
🏥 Scope of Application
📌 This Law applies to:
✔️All matters related to mental health, psychiatric patients, and mental health facilities in the UAE, including free zones.
✔️All other institutions concerned with the care of psychiatric patients or dealing with them.
✔️The staff working in these entities.
1️⃣ Rights of Psychiatric Patients
Under this Law, psychiatric patients have the right to:
✔️Receive a full explanation of their rights, the reasons for admission, and any decisions concerning them, in a language they understand.
✔️Be provided with an appropriate environment that preserves their dignity and meets their needs.
✔️Be informed of the nature of their admission (voluntary or involuntary) and the reasons for it.
✔️Have their personal privacy and the confidentiality of their information respected.
✔️Benefit from communication services and receive visitors in accordance with visitation regulations.
✔️Be protected from degrading treatment or exploitation.
✔️Submit complaints and grievances without this affecting the level of care provided.
✔️Obtain a psychological and social care plan upon discharge.
✔️Additional safeguards for minors, including the right to education and separation from adults in cases of involuntary admission.
✅Regulation of access to psychiatric facilities
🔎 The law stipulates the types of entry:
✔️Voluntary: at the request of the patient or his representative, with the possibility of leaving whenever he wants.
✔️Mandatory for evaluation: by a decision of the prosecution or a court ruling, for a period not exceeding 45 days, which can be extended.
✔️Mandatory for treatment: by decision of two psychiatrists, for a period not exceeding 45 days, extendable on the recommendation of the committee.
✔️Emergency: If a serious disorder appears, it is reserved and presented to a psychiatrist within 24 hours.
📌 Mandatory entry generally requires the approval of the competent judicial authority and may only be subject to precise controls.
Restriction and isolation of the patient
✔️The movement of the psychiatric patient may not be restricted or isolated except by a decision of the specialist psychiatrist or in emergency situations and must be for as short a period as possible to prevent harm to self, others or property.
✔️The restriction or isolation ends immediately with the disappearance of the cause
Oversight Committees
✍ The law establishes important committees to guarantee rights and follow-up:
✔️The Control and Follow-up Committee in each emirate, affiliated with the health authority, to follow up on cases of compulsory admission, ensure standards of care, and decide on complaints.
✔️The Committee for the Care of the Rights of the Mentally Ill within each psychiatric facility includes specialists to ensure the implementation of patients’ rights and resolve their complaints.
✅Penal Provisions
📌The law stipulates severe and stringent penalties to provide protection for patients.
To view a copy of the law, please click on the link below:
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