When Psychiatrists Are Liable: Risk Management and Violent Patients
Abstract
In an era of rapid discharge and community treatment, psychiatrists must assess, with insufficient information, their patients' potential for committing a violent act outside of the hospital every time they authorize a pass or a discharge. The authors review court decisions on prediction of dangerousness and research data on the risk of bomicide, assault, and suicide among released mental patients. They then discuss a risk-management approach to decision-making that consists of three components-risk assessment, risk evaluation, and risk reduction. The authors also provide a decision table that clinicians can use to identify factors that suggest a high risk of violence in a patient's current status, history, and treatment reponse.
Access content
To read the fulltext, please use one of the options below to sign in or purchase access.- Personal login
- Institutional Login
- Sign in via OpenAthens
- Register for access
-
Please login/register if you wish to pair your device and check access availability.
Not a subscriber?
PsychiatryOnline subscription options offer access to the DSM-5 library, books, journals, CME, and patient resources. This all-in-one virtual library provides psychiatrists and mental health professionals with key resources for diagnosis, treatment, research, and professional development.
Need more help? PsychiatryOnline Customer Service may be reached by emailing [email protected] or by calling 800-368-5777 (in the U.S.) or 703-907-7322 (outside the U.S.).
