SPECIAL EDITION
Understanding The Mental Capacity Act

Welcome to this special edition of Pass It On News. In this edition we will be sharing information about the Mental Capacity Act.

This year, one of our Board priorities is to look at the impact of mental capacity on self-neglect. To support this, we're hoping to improve understanding amongst frontline staff of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and increase confidence in its implementation where there are concerns that an adult is self-neglecting.

The information shared in this newsletter has been taken from our summary guidance document, Guidance for staff on the application of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 Code of Practice (PDF, 333KB). For more information, refer to that summary guidance document.

Your responsibilities

The Mental Capacity Act 2005 Code of Practice provides guidance to anyone who is working with adults who may lack capacity to make decisions, and particularly decisions about their care and treatment. It is intended for use by a wide range of staff, including (but not limited to):

• healthcare staff, such as doctors, nurses, dentists, and paramedics;
• social care staff, such as social workers and care managers;
• district and borough council staff, such as housing workers;
• police;
• care workers, including care home staff and domiciliary care workers;
• voluntary sector workers who are providing a service to the adult.

What is mental capacity?

Mental capacity is defined as the ability to make a specific decision, at the time that the decision needs to be made. This can include ‘daily life’ decisions, such as what to wear, or daily routines, or more ‘complex’ decisions which have more significant consequences. This could include decisions around medical treatments, move to a care home placement, or planning a will.

There are five key principles underpinning the Mental Capacity Act. It’s important to keep these principals in mind, whenever you are undertaking work relating to the Mental Capacity Act. These principles are:

• Presumption of capacity
• Support to make a decision
• Ability to make unwise decisions
• Best interest
• Least restrictive

For an explanation of each of these principles refer to Guidance for staff on the application of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 Code of Practice (PDF, 333KB).

Supporting adults to make decisions

Before deciding that an adult doesn’t have capacity to make a specific decision, it’s important that you work with them, to support them to make the decision, if they can. To do this, you need to consider the following:

• Do you know the best way to communicate with the adult? Discuss this with those who know the adult best. You may need to communicate pictorially or engage the help of an interpreter.
• Are they comfortable in the environment? Think about how you can make them feel more comfortable, including reducing distractions and respecting their privacy.
• Are you speaking with them at a good time? Some people are more alert in the mornings or evenings. If they are taking medication, does it make them drowsy for a time after taking it?
• Would they benefit from the presence of a friend or family member? You may also wish to consider whether they would benefit from an advocate.

Assessing and recording capacity

Once you have made the decision to assess an adult’s mental capacity, you will need to complete the mental capacity 'test'. You can read about how to complete this test in our Guidance for staff on the application of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 Code of Practice (PDF, 333KB). It is good practice for staff to keep a written record of the steps they have taken to assess mental capacity for all decisions, including ‘daily life’ decisions. This is particularly important for mental capacity assessments made in relation to ‘complex’ decisions. Details of the assessment should be recorded in: healthcare clinical notes; legal client files, in the case of solicitor or police involvement; care plans. Your organisation may have their own format for recording mental capacity assessments. If this is the case, you should use these formats to record the steps you have taken in assessing capacity. If your organisation does not have their own format, though, you could consider a format similar to the example in our Guidance for staff on the application of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 Code of Practice (PDF, 333KB).

The Mental Capacity Act and your practice

If you haven't already explored our new learning pathway workbook, which provides opportunities for you to reflect on your learning, explore further reading, and note down any actions you need to take forward for your practice, there's no better time than today. 

The following activities are taken from page 7 of the learning pathway workbook.

Activity 1: Daily life and complex decisions

Following what you've read today, consider the ‘daily life’ and ‘complex’ decisions that arise for the adults that you work with. Note down some examples of decisions that could require a Mental Capacity Assessment.

Activity 2: Recording Mental Capacity Assessments Your organisation may have their own format for recording Mental Capacity Assessments. It may be helpful for you to have a discussion with your manager or safeguarding lead, to ensure that you are aware of the expectations in your organisation.

To further your understanding of the Mental Capacity Act, visit the following resources:

• Mental Capacity Act | Summary Guidance (PDF, 341KB)
• Mental Capacity Act podcast (.m4a, 18.4MB)

To access training via the West Sussex County Council Learning and Development Gateway, search for: An Introduction to the Mental Capacity Act Self-Neglect and the Mental Capacity Act

Lastly, look out for communication regarding our Mental Capacity Act staff briefings later this year, including information about the interface between the Mental Capacity Act and self-neglect.

West Sussex Safeguarding Adults Board
Making Safeguarding Personal

Manage your preferences | Help with your account

Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.