The power of detention in the management of non-compliance with XXXX treatment: a survey of Irish practitioners and analysis of potential legal liability.

@entity1 @entity378 @entity6371 @entity166
OBJECTIVES: The detention of @entity1 infected with @entity378 has recently been the subject of significant professional and public interest. In Ireland, the power to detain and isolate probable sources of @entity166 is found in the Health Act 1947. The objective of this study was to describe the use of the power to detain, and to examine relevant legal implications. STUDY DESIGN: Cohort survey. METHODS: Respiratory and @entity166 physicians practising in the public sector were invited to complete a self-administered postal questionnaire. RESULTS: Of the 44 clinicians surveyed, 33 responded, representing a total of 356 years of specialist practice (mean 10.8 years). Although 70% of respondents had made use of threats of formal detention in dealing with non-compliant @entity1 , only one formal detention under statutory powers was identified. Infrastructural and legal concerns with the use of detention were common. There was widespread support for a broadening of the range of additional public health powers, including a power of prolonged detention in the setting of multi- @entity6371 . CONCLUSION: Detention and isolation of non-compliant @entity378 @entity1 remains in active use. Physicians detaining, or threatening to detain, @entity1 continue to expose themselves to legal liability because of the outdated legal framework underlying those powers.
