South Australian Consolidated Acts

MENTAL HEALTH ACT 1993 - SECT 3

3—Interpretation

In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears—

"ambulance officer" means a person who is employed as an ambulance officer, or is engaged as a volunteer ambulance officer, with an organisation that provides ambulance services;

"approved treatment centre" means any hospital, clinic or other premises, or any particular part of such a place, declared under Part 2 to be an approved treatment centre for the purposes of this Act;

"the Board" means the Guardianship Board established under the Guardianship and Administration Act 1993 ;

"category A treatment" means psychosurgery or any other treatment declared by regulation to be category A treatment;

"category B treatment" means electro-convulsive therapy or any other treatment declared by regulation to be category B treatment;

"the Health Commission" means the South Australian Health Commission;

"consent", in relation to treatment, means informed consent;

"director", in relation to an approved treatment centre, means the person for the time being in charge of the treatment centre or a person duly authorised to admit patients to the treatment centre;

"domestic partner" means a person who is a domestic partner within the meaning of the Family Relationships Act 1975 , whether declared as such under that Act or not;

"medical agent" means a person appointed under a medical power of attorney under the Consent to Medical Treatment and Palliative Care Act 1995 to be the medical agent of another;

"medical practitioner" means a person registered on the general register under the Medical Practitioners Act 1983 ;

"mental illness" means any illness or disorder of the mind;

"patient" means any person who has a mental illness and who has been admitted to an approved treatment centre, notwithstanding that he or she may be unlawfully at large or on leave of absence from the centre;

"prescribed psychiatric treatment" means category A treatment and category B treatment;

"psychiatrist" means a person registered under the Medical Practitioners Act 1983 as a specialist in psychiatry;

"psychosurgery" means leucotomy, amygdaloidotomy, hypothalamotomy, temporal lobectomy, cingulectomy, electrode implantation in the brain or any other brain surgery for the relief of mental illness by the elimination or stimulation of apparently normal brain tissues;

"the Public Advocate" means the person holding or acting in the office of Public Advocate under the Guardianship and Administration Act 1993 ;

"relative" of a person means—

            (a)         a spouse or domestic partner;

            (b)         a parent;

            (c)         a person (not being a guardian appointed under any Act or law) who acts in loco parentis in relation to the person;

            (d)         a brother or sister of or over 18 years of age;

            (e)         a son or daughter of or over 18 years of age;

"senior psychiatrist" means a person who has, since qualifying for registration as a specialist in psychiatry, had at least five years' experience as a practising psychiatrist;

"spouse"—a person is the spouse of another if they are legally married.

Note—

For definition of divisional penalties (and divisional expiation fees) see Appendix.