Section 5(4)

Section 5(4) applies if you are a voluntary patient reciving treatment for a mental disorder as an inpatient. A nurse specificaly qualified and trained to work with mental health problems or learning disabilities can detain you if they think that your mental health problem is so serious that:

• You need to be kept in hospital immediately for your health or safety of for the protection of others, and

• it is so urgent that it is not practicable to get a practitioner or clinician to provide a report to the hospital managers.

You can be kept under section5(4) for up to 6 hoursm or until a doctor or clinician with authority to detain you arrives. Whichever is earlier.