Mental Health (Care and Treatment) Act 2008

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —

“designated medical practitioner”, in relation to any psychiatric institution, means a medical practitioner who is working in the psychiatric institution and who is designated by name or office in writing by the Director or such public officer as the Director may appoint, for the purposes of this Act;

“Director” means the Director of Medical Services;

“medical practitioner” means any person who is registered as a medical practitioner under the Medical Registration Act 1997;

“mental disorder” means any mental illness or any other disorder or disability of the mind, and “mentally disordered” is to be construed accordingly;

“patient” means any person who has been detained or is receiving treatment in a psychiatric institution;

“principal officer”, in relation to any psychiatric institution, means the chairperson, medical board of the hospital which has been designated as a psychiatric institution or a part of which has been designated as a psychiatric institution (as the case may be) and includes any acting chairperson of the medical board or any person acting in a similar capacity as chairperson, medical board, whether or not that person is known by such designation;

“property” includes any thing in action and any interest in real or personal property;

“psychiatric institution” means a psychiatric institution designated by the Minister under section 3;

“psychiatrist” means any medical practitioner who is registered as a psychiatrist in the Register of Specialists under the Medical Registration Act 1997;

“relative”, in relation to a person suffering or appearing to be suffering from mental disorder, means any of the following persons being, in the case of any of the persons mentioned in paragraphs (b) to (i), a person 18 years of age or older:

“treatment” includes observation, inpatient treatment, outpatient treatment and rehabilitation.

In sections 20, 28 and 29, “court” means the General Division of the High Court or a Family Court.

In deducing relationships for the purposes of this section, any relationship of the half-blood is to be treated as a relationship of the whole blood, an illegitimate child is to be treated as the legitimate child of his or her mother and reputed father, and an adopted child is to be treated as a child of the adopting parent.

The management of every psychiatric institution and the care and custody of its patients are to be regulated according to such rules as may be made under this Act by the Minister.

The Minister must appoint for every psychiatric institution at least 12 visitors, 6 of whom must be medical practitioners.

Two or more visitors, one of whom must be a medical practitioner, must —

The Director may direct one or more visitors to inspect any psychiatric institution and to report to the Director on such matters as the Director may consider proper in regard to the management and condition of the psychiatric institution and the patients therein.

A person may be admitted to a psychiatric institution and there detained for treatment in accordance with the provisions of this Act for the period allowed by the provisions of this Act.

Nothing in this Act is to be construed as preventing a person who requires treatment for any mental disorder —

It is the duty of every police officer or special police officer to apprehend any person believed to be dangerous to himself or herself or other persons and such danger is reasonably suspected to be attributable to a mental disorder and take the person together with a report of the facts of the case without delay to —

For the purposes of and without limiting subsection (1) —

If it appears to a Magistrate on the report of a police officer or on the information of a person that any person supposed to be mentally disordered (“P”) is not under proper care and control or is ill‑treated or neglected by any relative or other person having the charge of P, the Magistrate may —

It is the duty of every police officer to report to a Magistrate every case of lack of proper care and control, ill‑treatment or neglect mentioned in subsection (1) which may come to the police officer’s knowledge.

Any police officer not below the rank of sergeant may visit any person supposed to be mentally disordered (“P”) in the care of any relative or other person having the charge of P for the purpose of ascertaining whether or not P is under proper care and control or is ill‑treated or neglected by any such relative or other person.

Any relative or other person mentioned in subsection (3) is legally bound to produce P for the inspection of the police officer and in the event the relative or other person refuses to do so shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $4,000.

A designated medical practitioner at a psychiatric institution who has examined any person who is suffering from a mental disorder and is of the opinion that that person should be treated, or continue to be treated, as an inpatient at the psychiatric institution may at any time sign an order in accordance with Form 1 in the Schedule —

A patient who has been admitted for treatment or detained for further treatment under an order made under subsection (1) may be detained for a further period of one month commencing from the end of the period of 72 hours mentioned in that subsection if —

A patient who has been detained for further treatment under an order made under subsection (2) must not be detained for any further period at the psychiatric institution for treatment unless before the end of the period of one month mentioned in that subsection, the patient has been brought before 2 designated medical practitioners working at the psychiatric institution, one of whom must be a psychiatrist, who have examined the patient separately and who are both satisfied that the patient requires further treatment at the psychiatric institution.

Each of the designated medical practitioners mentioned in subsection (3) must sign an order in accordance with Form 3 in the Schedule.

Two orders signed in accordance with subsection (4) are sufficient authority for the detention of the patient to whom they refer for a period not exceeding 6 months commencing from the date of the order.

A person must not be detained at a psychiatric institution for treatment unless —

It is the duty of the visitors of every psychiatric institution, upon being satisfied by the report of the principal officer of the institution and by personal inspection that any patient detained under section 10(3) should be further detained for care and treatment, to make an application in accordance with Form 4 in the Schedule to a Magistrate for an order of detention.

The Magistrate may on an application made under subsection (1), with or without further inquiry at his or her discretion, sign a detention order in accordance with Form 5 in the Schedule ordering the patient to be further detained in a psychiatric institution for care and treatment.

An order made under subsection (2) is sufficient authority for the further detention of the patient for a period not exceeding 12 months.

The visitors may, when making an application for an order of detention under this section, order by endorsement upon the detention order made under section 10(4) that the patient be detained until the order of detention has been received or until the Magistrate has made other order in the case.

Any endorsement under subsection (4) is sufficient authority for the detention of the patient during such period.

Where a patient has been detained at a psychiatric institution under an order made by a Magistrate under this section, the visitors of the psychiatric institution, upon being satisfied by the report of the principal officer of the institution and by personal inspection that the patient should be further detained at the institution for care and treatment, may make one or more further applications in accordance with Form 4 in the Schedule to a Magistrate for an order of detention.

Subsections (2) and (3) apply, with the necessary modifications, to any application made under subsection (6).

Two of the visitors of a psychiatric institution may, upon the written recommendation of the principal officer of the institution, permit a patient to be absent from that institution for as long as they think fit.

If before the end of the period of absence, a certificate of 2 designated medical practitioners working in the psychiatric institution that it is no longer necessary that the patient be detained in the institution for care and treatment is forwarded to the principal officer or the visitors of the institution, the patient is deemed to be discharged from the institution.

If the patient does not return to the psychiatric institution within 28 days of the end of the period of absence, and no certificate mentioned in subsection (2) has been received, the patient may be retaken as in the case of an escape.

The principal officer of a psychiatric institution may permit a patient of the institution to be absent from the institution for any period not exceeding 6 months, and if upon the end of the period of absence the patient does not return to the institution, the patient may be retaken as in the case of an escape.

Without limiting subsection (4), the principal officer of a psychiatric institution may, where it appears that a patient detained in the psychiatric institution requires treatment for an illness other than mental disorder, direct that the patient —

The Director or such public officer as the Director may appoint, may by order in accordance with Form 6 in the Schedule order the removal of any patient from any psychiatric institution in Singapore to any other psychiatric institution in Singapore.

An order under subsection (1) is sufficient authority for the removal of the patient and also for the patient’s reception into the psychiatric institution to which the patient is ordered to be removed.

Where a person who is not a citizen of Singapore or not domiciled in Singapore (“P”) is detained in a psychiatric institution under the provisions of this Act and it appears expedient that P should be removed to the country of which P is a national or in which P is domiciled, the Minister may, if the Minister is satisfied that —

A warrant under this section is sufficient authority for the master of any vessel or captain of any aircraft to receive and detain P on board the vessel or aircraft for the purpose of conveying P to P’s destination.

If any patient detained in a psychiatric institution under the provisions of this Act has an estate applicable to his or her maintenance, or if any person legally bound to maintain the patient has the means to maintain the patient, the principal officer of the institution may apply to the court for an order for the payment of the cost of maintenance of the patient.

The court is to inquire into the matter in a summary way, and on being satisfied that the patient has an estate applicable to his or her maintenance, or that any person is legally bound to maintain and has the means of maintaining the patient, may make an order for the recovery of the cost of maintenance of the patient, together with the costs of the application, out of the estate or from the person.

An order made by a court under subsection (2) is to be enforced in the same manner and has the same force and effect and is subject to the same appeal as a judgment or order made by that court in a suit in respect of the property or person mentioned in that subsection.

Any medical practitioner, nurse, attendant or other person employed by or rendering service in any psychiatric institution or hospital mentioned in section 15(5), who ill-treats any patient shall be guilty of an offence.

For the purposes of subsection (1), a person ill‑treats a patient if the person —

For the purpose of subsection (2)(c), a person is deemed to have neglected the patient in circumstances likely to cause the patient unnecessary physical pain, suffering or injury or emotional injury or injury to the patient’s health if the person wilfully or unreasonably neglects to provide adequate food, clothing, medical aid or care for the patient.

A person may be convicted of an offence under subsection (1) —

Any person who has sexual intercourse with a patient of a psychiatric institution, while in that institution, shall be guilty of an offence.

Consent is not a defence in any proceedings for an offence under subsection (5) if the accused knew or had reason to suspect that the person in respect of whom the offence was committed was a patient of the psychiatric institution.

Any person who is guilty of an offence —

Where a person has —

No proceedings, civil or criminal, shall be brought against any person in any court in respect of any such matter as is mentioned in subsection (1) without the leave of the court, and leave shall not be given unless the court is satisfied that there is substantial ground for the contention that the person, against whom it is sought to bring the proceedings, has acted in bad faith or without reasonable care.

Notice of any application under subsection (2) must be given to the person against whom it is sought to bring the proceedings, and the person is entitled to be heard against the application.

Subject to section 25, any person who —

A prosecution under this section must not be commenced except with the consent of the Public Prosecutor.

Where any person (“P”) has been received into a psychiatric institution in accordance with section 249 or 252 of the Criminal Procedure Code 2010 or section 43 of the Prisons Act 1933, the court —

If at any time it appears to the satisfaction of the court that P has no sufficient property and that no person legally bound to maintain P has sufficient means for the payment of the cost, the court is to so certify instead of making an order under that subsection for the payment of the cost.

An order under subsection (1) is to be enforced in the same manner and has the same force and effect and is subject to the same appeal as a judgment or order made by the court in a suit in respect of the property or person mentioned in that subsection.

The Director or any public officer authorised by the Director may compound any offence under this Act that is prescribed as a compoundable offence by collecting from a person reasonably suspected of having committed the offence a sum not exceeding $2,000.

On payment of the sum of money mentioned in subsection (1), no further proceedings are to be taken against that person in respect of the offence.

All sums collected under this section must be paid into the Consolidated Fund.

The Minister may make rules for carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Act.

Without limiting subsection (1), the Minister may make rules to prescribe —

The Minister may, in making any rules, provide that any contravention of any provision of the rules is an offence punishable with a fine not exceeding $5,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or both.