title: Assessing decision-making capacity: a survey of psychiatrists' knowledge.
abstract: We aimed to survey the knowledge of psychiatrists on the assessment of decision-making capacity. Ninety-two psychiatrists of all grades and three other doctors attending a regional conference were marked on their verbal response to the question 'What are the key elements in the assessment of a patient's capacity?' On average, participants mentioned three out of the five elements in testing decision-making capacity. Scores were negatively correlated with age (Pearson's coefficient 0.275, sig 0.007). Section 12 status and grade had no impact on knowledge. Most psychiatrists of all grades have a reasonable knowledge of assessing decision-making capacity. Over a third of participants mentioned two or fewer of the five points, suggesting inadequate knowledge. Assessing decision-making capacity needs to be emphasised in training throughout psychiatrists' careers--not just at the start.
authors.affiliation: Langdon Hospital, Dawlish, Devon. Simon.Hill@devonptnrs.nhs.uk
authors.forename: Simon A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.forename: Gregory I
authors.initials: GI
authors.lastname: Mather
authors.forename: Adrian J B
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: James
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002983:Clinical Competence; D003226:Congresses as Topic; D003657:Decision Making; D005104:Expert Testimony; D005260:Female; D005555:Forensic Psychiatry / Q000193:education*; D006801:Humans; D019359:Knowledge; D008297:Male; D016743:Mental Competency / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D006113:United Kingdom