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Substance Addiction (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act 2017

Assessment and treatment of persons suffering from severe substance addiction - Enforcement

106: Apprehension of patients not permitted to be absent from treatment centre

You could also call this:

"What happens if you leave your treatment centre without permission and someone comes to take you back"

Illustration for Substance Addiction (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act 2017

If you are a patient who is supposed to be at a treatment centre, but you are not there, someone might come to get you. This can happen if you did not go to the treatment centre when you were supposed to, or if you did not return after being allowed to leave for a while. It can also happen if you left the treatment centre without permission, which means you did not follow the rules of the Substance Addiction (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act 2017.

The people who can come to get you are your doctor, a specialist, someone who works at the treatment centre, a police officer, or someone who is helping one of these people. They can take you back to the treatment centre. If you are taken back to the treatment centre, it will be because you were not following the rules, such as those outlined in section 30(3)(a) or section 39.

A police officer needs to get a special paper, called a warrant, before they can come to get you, unless it is not possible to get one, as explained in section 107.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM6609266.

Topics:
Health and wellbeing > Mental healthHealth and wellbeing > Public healthCrime and justice > Criminal lawCrime and justice > Police and safety
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105: Police assistance, or

"Police can help people with severe substance addiction and take them to a safe place for assessment or treatment."

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107: Judge or Registrar may issue warrant, or

"A Judge can order police to take you to a place for assessment or treatment if you don't go when told."

Part 2Assessment and treatment of persons suffering from severe substance addiction
Enforcement

106Apprehension of patients not permitted to be absent from treatment centre

  1. Subsection (2) applies to a patient who—

  2. fails to attend at the place specified in a notice given under section 30(3)(a) for the purpose of admission to a treatment centre; or
    1. fails to return to a treatment centre on or before the expiry of a permitted period of absence granted under section 39 or fails to comply with a condition of the permission; or
      1. absents himself or herself from the treatment centre otherwise than in accordance with this Act.

        1. A person described in subsection (3) may—

        2. apprehend the patient; and
          1. take the patient to a treatment centre.

            1. The persons referred to in subsection (2) are—

            2. the patient’s responsible clinician:
              1. an approved specialist:
                1. any suitably qualified person authorised by the Director or the manager of the treatment centre:
                  1. a constable:
                    1. a person assisting a person mentioned in paragraph (a), (b), (c), or (d).

                      1. A constable must not exercise the power in subsection (2) without a warrant, if it would be reasonably practicable to obtain a warrant under section 107.