A YOUNG pregnant girl was held in a psychiatric unit in Ireland after a consulting psychiatrist said a termination 'was not the solution.'
The young girl's case - which was before the courts last year - was published amongst 22 cases examined by the Child Care Law Reporting Project, who report on child care proceedings in Irish courts.
The objective of the project is to ensure proceedings are in accordance with Section 3 of the Child Care Act 2007 and with the 2012 Regulations made under the Act.
The young girl, who has not been identified in name or age, was detained under Section 25 of the Mental Health Act 2001 by a consultant psychiatrist, who said the child had a mental health disorder.
The report stated: 'The consultant psychiatrist was of the opinion that while the child was at risk of self harm and suicide as a result of the pregnancy, this could be managed by treatment and that termination of the pregnancy was not the solution for all of the child’s problems at that stage.'
The District Court judge involved in the young girl's case appointed a guardian ad litem to give a secondary assessment on the young girl's mental health.
The guardian, who visited the young girl on several occasions, reported to a different judge hearing the discharge application that she 'did not wish to be detained and was extremely upset.'
A third consultant psychiatrist who visited the child to determine if she she had a mental disorder in accordance with the Mental Health Act said that while the young girl presented as being depressed, 'there was no evidence of a psychological disorder and was dealing with her depression well.'
"This consultant psychiatrist was of the opinion that the young girl was not suicidal and was not in immediate danger of committing suicide [and] concluded that as the young girl did not have a mental illness she could not be detained under the Mental Heath Act.
"The consultant psychiatrist also reported that the young girl had very strong views as to why she wanted a termination of her pregnancy," the report said.
A consulting adolescent psychiatrist - who had visited with the young girl prior to the application for her detention - said the girl was 'agitated and angry' but did not suffer from acute mental health.
Her mental health was also difficult to ascertain on admission to the medical facility as both the young girl and her mother believed they were being transferred to Dublin for a termination, but instead, the girl was admitted to a mental health unit.
The detention order was discharged by a District Court judge who was satisfied that the young girl did not suffer with a mental health disorder, and was 'entitled' to be discharged.
See More: Abortion, Featured, Newsletterr
