Rights Advice
Rights advice is an important component in the system of checks and balances established under the Mental Health Act and its regulations for the protection of the rights of the individual.
Rights advice is a process by which patients in psychiatric facilities and persons in the community who are being considered for community treatment orders (CTOs) are informed of their rights when their legal status has changed. In the case of community treatment orders, if the person is incapable to make a decision regarding the proposed treatment (the community treatment plan), the person's substitute decision-maker (SDM) must receive rights advice.
The Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office provides rights advice in the 10 current and former Provincial Psychiatric Hospitals, and (by March 2004) in 52 of 59 Schedule 1 psychiatric facilities in community hospitals across Ontario. PPAO also provides rights advice to persons (and their SDMs, if any) being considered for the issuance or renewal of a Community Treatment Order where the person is not an inpatient of a psychiatric facility.