Visions Journal

Involuntary Treatment

Tensions and choices

PDF | EPUB | Vol. 21, No. 2 (2025)

Involuntary treatment sits between healthcare and personal autonomy, between responsibilities to provide care and an individual’s right to choose (or decline) their own care. As involuntary treatment is increasingly promoted as political tool to solve perceptions of public disorder, it also raises important questions around the provision of voluntary treatment. As the number of people detained under the Mental Health Act increases, people continue to struggle to find voluntary, consensual care. Many people in BC do not have a family doctor, many people encounter long waitlists to access service providers, and gaps (such as wait times between leaving a detox program and entering a treatment program) disrupt people when they start to make progress. Health and well-being do not just sit in the healthcare system. They’re impacted by access to housing, income, culture, inclusive communities, and more, yet someone in crisis is viewed only as an individual exhibiting a behaviour or a symptom. This topic is nuanced and complex, and this issue of Visions aims to share many experiences and perspectives. You’ll find the experiences of people living through involuntary treatment as well as its impacts on loved ones and first responders. You’ll also see the conditions in which involuntary treatment takes place and the consequences of detainment on treatment and treatment outcomes.