Long-term deprivation of liberty
I.3.4. Residential facilities which provide health, social or rehabilitation
services
88. The public or private residential facilities which provide health, social or rehabilitation services are also a focus of attention for the NPM.
These facilities provide services to groups (the elderly, chronically ill people and people with physical, mental, sensory or learning disabilities)
amongst which there may be persons committed to the facility against
their will.
89. Organic Law 8/2015 of July 22nd, on modification of the infancy and
adolescence protection framework, amended the first Additional Provision
of the Civil Procedure Act for the purposes of bringing article 763, which
regulates involuntary committal on the grounds of mental disorder, under
organic law, after part of said article was declared unconstitutional by Constitutional Court Ruling 132/2010 of December 2nd for not meeting the
characteristics of organic law.
Art. 763 LEC
§312 and ss AR 2014
Despite this reform, there is still no comprehensive regulation which
provides a sufficient guarantee of the fundamental rights of people detained in mental health facilities, whether within health or social care facilities, and which regulates the temporary restrictions used to protect their
life, their health or their physical integrity. For that reason, during 2015 the
NPM continued to urge the Executive to push forward legislative reform
which regulates detentions carried out under the Civil Procedure Act (LEC)
and which adapts regulation to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities of December 13th 2006. The NPM also reminded the
Executive of the Observations of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in its initial report from Spain (CRPD/C/ESP/1). The
above would avoid the current situation whereby the administrations, as
well as judges and public prosecutors, apply different criteria to involuntary
committal.
No regulation exists
§312 AR 2014
Although the Administration has accepted this Recommendation and intends to examine said regulation, it has pointed out that, currently (the time
of finalising this report), this is not possible, given that it has less involvement in the management of the ordinary course of business of public affairs.
90. Until such time as the required regulation is produced, the NPM criteria with respect to older people admitted to residential facilities continues
to be the set of safeguards, and is the procedure currently compiled in article 763 of the Civil Procedure Act on committal on the grounds of mental
disorder, which extends to adults when they are unable to give their consent freely.
Adult criteria
§313 AR 2014
91. In 2015 the NPM made two multidisciplinary visits to residential facilities which provide health, social or rehabilitation services: the Pumarín
Mixed Residence (Gijón) and the San Juan de Dios Centre in Ciempozuelos (Madrid).
Visits in 2015
71
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