This book comprehensively discusses the background to the passing of India's revolutionary Mental Healthcare Act, 2017, offering a detailed description of the Act itself and a rigorous analysis in the context of the CRPD and the World Health Organization (WHO) standards for mental health law. It examines the fine balance, between complying with the CRPD while still delivering practical, humane, and implementable legislation. It explores how this legislation was shaped by the WHO standards and provides insights into areas where the Indian legislators deviated from these guidelines and why. Taking India as an example, it highlights what is possible in other low- and middle-income countries. Further it covers key issues in mental health, identifying potential competing interests and exploring the difficulties and limitations of international guidelines.
The book is a valuable resource for psychiatrists, nurses, social workers, non-governmental organizations and all mental healthcareworkers in India and anyone studying human rights law.
Author Biography:
Dr Richard Duffy is a Consultant Psychiatrist and has worked in the areas of general adult and liaison psychiatry. He completed his medical degree at Trinity College Dublin and holds a Masters of Epidemiology from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Richard’s current research is on the Indian Mental Healthcare Act 2017, and he has published international peer-reviewed papers on this topic. His current research into India’s law is as part of a Ph.D. in Trinity College Dublin.
Professor Brendan Kelly, M.B. B.Ch. B.A.O., M.A. M.Sc. M.A., M.D. Ph.D. D.Gov. Ph.D., MCPsychI FRCPsych FRCPI FTCD, is a Professor of Psychiatry at Trinity College Dublin and Consultant Psychiatrist at Tallaght University Hospital. In addition to his medical degree (M.B. B.Ch. B.A.O.), Professor Kelly holds masters degrees in Epidemiology (M.Sc.), Healthcare Management (M.A.) and Buddhist Studies (M.A.), and doctorates in Medicine (M.D.), History (Ph.D.), Governance (D.Gov.) and Law (Ph.D.). Professor Kelly has authored and co-authored over 225 peer-reviewed publications and 450 non-peer-reviewed publications. His books include Custody, Care and Criminality: Forensic Psychiatry and Law in 19th-Century Ireland (History Press Ireland, 2014), Ada English: Patriot and Psychiatrist (Irish Academic Press, 2014), “He Lost Himself Completely”: Shell Shock and its Treatment at Dublin’s Richmond War Hospital (1916-19) (Liffey Press, 2014), Dignity, Mental Health and Human Rights: Coercion and the Law (Routledge, 2015), Mental Illness, Human Rights and the Law (RCPsych Publications, 2016), Hearing Voices: The History of Psychiatry in Ireland (Irish Academic Press, 2016) and Mental Health in Ireland: The Complete Guide for Patients, Families, Health Care Professionals and Everyone Who Wants To Be Well (Liffey Press, 2017). In 2017, Professor Kelly was appointed Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Law and Psychiatry.
