title: [Obligatory treatment: ethical, medical and legal issues].
abstract: Legislation passed on 30 June 1838 created a medico-administrative and legal framework for forced hospitalization. Updated in 1990, this law has been evaluated twice. The last evaluation, in 2005, recommended a 72-hour observation period before deciding whether hospitalization was necessary. The situation of violent patients remains unclear. On the one hand, the psychiatrist has no means of impinging on these patients if they decide to stop their treatment once outside the hospital. On the other hand, for patients who are declared to be irresponsible, it would be wise to consider the possibility of being able to judge them, and adapt their sentences accordingly.
authors.affiliation: Psychiatre des Hôpitaux, Président de la Compagnie des Experts Médecins près la Cour d'Appel de Paris, Hôpital Robert Ballanger, 93600 Aulnay Sous Bois.
authors.forename: Jean-Claude
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Archambault
mesh_terms: D005602:France; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000628:therapy*; D028701:Patient Rights / Q000941:ethics* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D016312:Treatment Refusal / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence