Information About Involuntary Emergency Admissions (IEAs) - Video

Information About Involuntary Emergency Admissions (IEAs)

Transcript of video:

Hello and welcome to this narrated PowerPoint. My name is David King. I'm a judge in the New Hampshire Circuit Court. You are listening to this because you are the petitioner in the involuntary emergency admission process. I want to take just a few minutes to talk about the involuntary emergency admission process, often referred to as an IEA. From the perspective of the court.

As the name suggests, these cases involve the involuntary mental health treatment of patients on an emergency basis, although the process moves quickly. These are among the most important cases in the circuit courts and are designed to be a short term solution to what may be or may become a longer term issue. As we begin, let me acknowledge that I cannot possibly know what you are going through as you listen to this.

While I have had years of experience from the court side of these cases, I know that your personal experience is unique to you and the person that you were concerned with, whom I may refer to as the patient. The judges and staff in our courts who deal with these cases are specially trained and understand that they are challenging and that the process can seem daunting and perhaps frightening for petitioners.

I'm therefore pleased that you are listening to this recording. Not everything I say will necessarily apply to your situation, but some may either now or in the future. Hopefully I can increase your understanding of the IEA process from the point that the courts get involved.

I will be talking about the court process, not how to navigate the mental health service system. The process of accessing mental health services in New Hampshire, like in any other state, can be complicated. For information and resources about mental health services in New Hampshire. I encourage you to review the list of resources we have created for you that are located in the written materials next to where you clicked on this presentation.

Those materials are also available on the Court's website, on the District Division's IEA page, and include resources provided by the state of New Hampshire's Department of Health and Human Services as well as NAMI, New Hampshire.

First, let me explain how the IEA process begins. The IEA process starts with the patient admission to an emergency department at any hospital in the state. This will happen in one of two ways. The patient may have voluntarily gone to the emergency department for assistance. In that situation, you will either complete an IEA petition before going to the hospital with the patient, or you might complete the IEA petition while you are at the hospital.

You will have the option of completing your portion of the IEA petition in writing by hand, or using our electronic program to type your answers and then print out a completed petition. In other circumstances, the patient was transported to the hospital by law enforcement because they were not willing or safely able to go to the hospital voluntarily. For that to have happened, someone perhaps you completed an IEA petition either online or by hand, and a complaint for a compulsory mental examination which was signed by a circuit court judge or a justice of the peace.

Each hospital emergency department is a little different. And of course, the timing of when you were there and how busy the emergency department is will also factor into your experience. But I will try to explain in general terms what you can expect. By now, as the petitioner, you have completed the IAEA petition up to the point that requires your signature.

You will hand the entire petition, which will include additional pages that have not yet been filled in to the hospital staff for the medical professionals to complete their part of the process. At the hospital, the patient may have a physical and will be seen by a mental health professional. If the medical professionals determine that the patient meets the criteria to be held for treatment at a mental health facility called a designated receiving facility or DRF.

They will sign the IEA certificate, which is part of the petition you provided. At that point, hospital personnel will send the fully completed petition to the Department of Health and Human Services and the DRF. From there, those entities may file the IEA petition with the court. I say may file because along the way, other things might happen. For example, a patient may have voluntarily checked themselves into the hospital for mental health assistance, or another physician might determine that the patient does not meet the eligibility requirements for admission. In either of those scenarios the IEA petition will not get filed with the court. If the petition is filed with the court, the court will first appoint an attorney for the patient. It is critical that the patient have legal representation because, after all, they are at risk of losing their liberty and freedom, even if for only a short time in order to receive necessary treatment.

Court staff will next select a hearing date that will be within three days. Not including Sundays and holidays from the date that the certificate of admission was signed by the hospital professional. You, as the petitioner, will receive an email with a notice of hearing and information necessary for you to participate in the hearing process. Be sure to provide a valid email address and to check it regularly once the petition is filed.

That is how we will communicate this important information to you. It is also critical that the court has a phone number where you can be reached because we will call you for the hearing. You should plan to be in a location where it is quiet, and the confidentiality of the process can be protected. While most petitioners will participate in the hearing process by telephone, you do have the option of attending the hearing in person at the Concord Circuit Court, if you prefer. Also, some facilities have video technology which may allow some parties to attend the hearing by video. There are many combinations of technology used for these hearings which will continue to evolve over time. Most importantly, you must keep the court updated with a phone number where we can reach you at the time of the scheduled hearing. At the hearing you will be sworn in and asked to verify the information that you completed on the petition. The patient's attorney will be allowed to ask you questions, cross-examine you, and the judge may also ask questions aimed at determining whether the patient presents a danger to self or others. If you included any witness statement in the IEA petition, you will need to make arrangements to have that person available by telephone on the date and time scheduled for the hearing as well.

When the hearing is concluded, the judge will take the case under advisement and issue a written decision that you will receive by email later that day or the very next day at the latest. If the petition is granted, the patient may be held for treatment at a DRF for up to ten days from the date the certificate was signed, not including weekends. So up to approximately 14 days. I hope you have found this presentation to be helpful in some small way. I encourage you to look at the written resources that are found on the written overview right next to where you clicked on to this presentation and also on the Court's website. Should you have any questions at any time,you may reach the court by calling 1-855-212-1234. I wish you the best of luck as you move through this difficult time.