IEEE Technology and Society Magazine - Winter 2014 - 36
Fig. 1. Tele-courtroom at Missouri University Psychiatric Center.
"courtroom," located in the originating mental health
facility (Fig. 1). This "courtroom" replicates an actual
courtroom, complete with the United States flag and
the State Seal. Hospital staff would then escort the
patients without need of law-enforcement restraints to
this "courtroom," which itself is located on the same
floor as the adult inpatient units.
Since the implementation of videoconferencing at MUPC, an average of 250 cases per year have
occurred, mostly for civil commitment, but also other
cases including, but not limited to emergency guardianship hearings. The experience of all the parties
involved in the process, including patients, has been
positive overall. Boone County Circuit Judge Deborah Daniels says "Teleconferencing is far superior to
traditional court hearing for civil commitments, as it is
an efficient choice for patients, medical and legal staff
involved in the process. It plays to the strengths rather
than weaknesses of the system and does not interfere
with the judicial process."
We have found that this method has saved healthcare
staff members' time, improved productivity, enhanced
patient and staff safety, and eliminated the burden and
embarrassment of transportation in restraints by law
enforcement. In particular, this process has helped
36
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preserve the dignity of the patient. We have found
the only downside to this method is the initial investment on the equipment and dedication of space for the
facility's "courtroom." However, its long-term savings
easily offset that investment [4]. Therefore, we highly
recommend the use of teleconferencing with respect
to most of the mental health hospitals dealing with
involuntary admissions and perhaps some other court
proceedings across the country.
Author Information
The authors are with the Department of Psychiatry,
University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, MO.
Email: gopalakrishnag@health.missouri.edu.
References
[1] Missouri Dept. of Mental Health, Reference Guide for Civil Involuntary Detention. Missouri, 2009; http://dmh.mo.gov/docs/mentalillness/
refguideforcid.pdf.
[2] U.S. vs. Baker. United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit, 1995.
[3] APA, APA Resource Document on Telepsychiatry via Videoconferencing.
Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association, 1998; http://
www.telepsychiatry.com/apa.pdf.
[4] J. Price and H. Sapci, "Law & psychiatry: Telecourt: the use of
videoconferencing for involuntary commitment hearings in academic
health centers," Psychiatric Services, vol. 58, no. 1, pp. 17-18, 2007.
IEEE TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY MAGAZINE
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WINTER 2014
http://dmh.mo.gov/docs/mentalillness/
http://http://
http://www.telepsychiatry.com/apa.pdf
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