[Legal rights for the aged on admission to a psychiatric clinic or transfer to a psychiatric nursing home. Forms of admission, compulsory admission and incapacitation].

The legal position of elderly persons on transfer to a psychiatric department must be improved. The proportion of elderly persons in the population is increasing and, parallel with this, there are increasing problems concerning incapacity to manage their own affairs on account of various forms of dementia. Conditions of dementia may cause inability to make decisions about transfer to a psychiatric department. The extent of this problem is illustrated in this article. On referral to a psychiatric nursing home, it is necessary to declare these persons incapable of managing their own affairs for legal reasons. To avoid this form of intervention, the present authors suggest appointment of a personal advisor instead. It is recommended that directives for solving this problem should be incorporated in the new Danish legislation concerning mental illness.