Practical applicability of the law on civil commitment of mentally ill patients in kinondoni division and muhimbili national hospital, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Background: Mental health legislations have the primary aim of protecting the rights of patients and providing appropriate care. Provision for civil commitment of persons of unsound mind is an important component of this. In Tanzania as elsewhere the law places responsibility on the police and court for the identification of persons of unsound mind to be cared for. The extent of knowledge and awareness of the provisions of mental health legislation among patients, their relatives and relevant professionals is unknown. The views and preferences of patients, their relatives and other stakeholders regarding the process of implementation of the law is also unknown. Objectives: To determine degree of knowledge on mental health law among health workers, police officers, lawyers, judges, patients and their relatives as well as their opinion regarding the provisions ofthe law and its implementation Materials and method: A cross sectional study was conducted among police officers, lawyers, doctors, nurses, patients and their relatives. Data was collected using an interviewer administered questionnaire for patient and relatives and self administered questionnaire for professionals. Results: This study found that, the level of awareness of mental health law on civil commitment of mentally ill patient in Kinondoni division and Department of Psychiatry Muhimbili National Hospital, Dar es Salaam city was low (34.4%) and the level of knowledge was even lower (24.4%). Awareness of mental health law on civil commitment of mentally ill patients appeared to increase with increasing level of education. Adherence to the laid down procedures of the law was found to be poor among all participant groups studied. Conclusion and Recommendations: This study indicates that the awareness and knowledge of mental health law on civil commitment of mentally ill patients is low. The level of awareness and knowledge should therefore be raised through education and training. There is a need to review the current law to bring it in line with the needs and requirement of relevant stakeholders and remove some of the barriers to its application. Such revision should be preceded by community based studies and consultations with relevant stakeholders