The Mental Diseases Hospital Act 1915 also named 'An Act to alter the Official Designation of "The New Norfolk Hospital for the Insane," to amend "The Insane Persons' Hospitals Act", and for other purposes' (Act no. 6 Geo. V No.8) amended the Mental Hospitals Act 1858 (Act no. 22 Vict No. 22) in two key ways. Firstly there was a shift in language from the term 'Insane' to 'Mental Diseases'. Secondly the legislation empowered the Medical Officer in charge of a Mental Hospital to detain any patient for up to 48 hours if they believe the person poses a threat to themselves or others. This belief must be shared by another medical practitioner. This amendment was repealed by Statute Law Revision Act 1934 (Act no. 25 Geo. V no.78) on 31 May 1938.
Sources used to compile this entry: Law Research Service, Melbourne Law School, Law Library, The University of Melbourne. 'Find and Connect Project - Tasmanian Legislation', 20 January 2014, held in the project files at the University of Melbourne eScholarship Research Centre.
Prepared by: Elizabeth Daniels
Created: 6 January 2015, Last modified: 15 October 2015
Last updated: 4 August 2023
Cite this: https://www.findandconnect.gov.au/ref/tas/biogs/TE01072b.htm
First published by the Find & Connect Web Resource Project for the Commonwealth of Australia, 2011
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