Ask Me Help Desk - Needs to be committed

My brother's wife left him for another man several months ago. She came over to his house the other night and went into his bathroom and slit her wrists. He took her out to the emergency room and their doctor said he would not fill out a report if someone can watch her for three days and not to tell anyone about this. In the meantime, my brother has felt sorry for her and had her move back in. I'm afraid for his life. This lady has done a lot of bizarre things in the last two years. He won't have her committed but says he couldn't live with himself if anything happened to her. What does it take to have someone committed? Does it have to be the spouse or can anyone do it?

Sounds like she is using emotional blackmail to get back into his life.
Really nothing can be done against her will. If she was committed she would most likely only be held for something like a 24 to 48 hour evaluation and released.
As long as your brother is willing to take her in that is considered his adult choice.

Well you can contact the doctor and mention you are going to report him for not reporting the person who tied to kill their self.

You can call the police and report it all, but in the end if the husband will not do anything there is nothing you can do.

First of all that doctor should lose his license, in all fifty states it is mandatory they keep patients for a holding period. 24-72 hours. In most states it is three days. A doctor in an emergency room can not be a true judge of if she really meant to do it or not. Had she walked out the door and jumped in front of a train he can go to jail in some states.

As far as having her committed it is a lengthy process. There is nothing that you would really be able to do if her husband or another willing family member is not willing to go before a doctor or judge.

Look in your local phone book. Find a number for a suicide help line or resource center. Get your brother in touch with them. Maybe if you can not get through to him a professional can. There are many free and low cost programs out there. Most importantly she needs help, and he needs to understand that he needs to help her to realize that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by baho

First of all that doctor should lose his liscense, in all fifty states it is mandatory they keep patients for a holding period. 24-72 hours. In most states it is three days. A doctor in an emergency room can not be a true judge of if she really meant to do it or not. Had she walked out the door and jumped in front of a train he can go to jail in some states.

As far as having her commited it is a lengthy process. There is nothing that you would really be able to do if her husband or another willing family member is not willing to go before a doctor or judge.

Look in your local phone book. Find a number for a suicide help line or resource center. Get your brother in touch with them. Maybe if you can not get through to him a professional can. there are many free and low cost programs out there. Most importantly she needs help, and he needs to understand that he needs to help her to realize that.

At least in my State - NY - hospitalization is not mandatory UNLESS and UNTIL the Physician determines that this was a serious suicide attempt, not a threat, not an act to get attention. There is a ton of case law on the subject. I would say in this case the Physician did not find this to be a serious attempt and did not commit a malpractice.

I would like OP to post more information about the attempt - what medical attention did the wife require? That would be helpful.

Also - what State has the requirement that any suicide attempt requires mandatory hospitalization? I don't know which State you are in.

She has cried out for his help by cutting herself.

Blackmail or not, she needs to see why she did this,HE needs to stop this behavior or he will continue to be dragged down with her.

Obviously,he isn't too distressed that she left him or he would have let her die!

If he has no boundries to protect himself,she will continue to be his master.Relationships work when both are on even terms,they are not.

How is he today?

How is she?

I am interested in the outcome of this,please write back and tell us more.

KBC