Article 43(Hospitalization by legal guardians) #
(1) Upon receipt of an application from two or more legal guardians of a mentally ill person (referring to two or more persons with priority according to the order of priority under Article 39 (2), if there is a dispute among legal guardians on hospitalization or admission or one person, if there is only one legal guardian), the head of a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium may hospitalize or admit the mentally ill person, only where a psychiatrist diagnoses that the mentally ill person needs hospitalization or admission. When the head of a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium hospitalizes or admits a person in such cases, he or she shall require the legal guardian to submit a written application for hospitalization or admission and a document certifying the authority of the legal guardian in the forms prescribed by Decree of the Ministry of Health and Welfare.
(2) If a mentally ill person meets each of the following criteria, the application for hospitalization or admission under paragraph (1) shall be accompanied by the written recommendation of hospitalization or admission, describing the diagnosis on each criterion, with respect to the psychiatrist's diagnosis on necessity for hospitalization or admission under the latter part of paragraph (1):
1. Where a mentally ill person suffers a mental disease of a degree or nature requiring hospitalization or care at a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium;
2. Where a mentally ill person needs hospitalization or admission because the person is likely to harm his or her own health or safety or that of another person (referring to cases where a person is likely to meet the criteria prescribed by Decree of the Ministry of Health and Welfare).
(3) If the result of an examination conducted by a psychiatrist indicates that a mentally ill person meets each of the criteria of paragraph (2) and needs hospitalization or admission, the head of a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium may require the person to be hospitalized or admitted within a specified period not exceeding two weeks for a more detailed examination of symptoms.
(4) Only where there is a consensus among two or more psychiatrists who work for different mental medical institutions or mental health sanatoriums (including at least one psychiatrist who works for a national or public mental medical institution or mental health sanatorium under Article 21 or 22 or a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium designated by the Minister of Health and Welfare) on the result of the examination conducted under paragraph (3) on a mentally ill person, the head of a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium may require the mentally ill person to be hospitalized or admitted for medical treatment.
(5) The period of hospitalization or admission under paragraph (4) shall not exceed three months from the date of initial hospitalization or admission; provided, the period of hospitalization or admission may be extended as follows:
1. Extension of the period of the initial hospitalization or admission after the three months: By up to three months;
2. Extension of the period of hospitalization or admission after the extension of the initial hospitalization or admission under subparagraph 1: By up to six months everytime the period of hospitalization or admission is extended.
(6) Only where all the following criteria are met, the head of a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium may extend the period of hospitalization or admission pursuant to any subparagraph of paragraph (5). In such cases, the head of the mental medical institution or mental health sanatorium shall request a Special Self-Governing City Mayor, a Special Self-Governing Province Governor, or the head of a Si/Gun/Gu, whoever has jurisdiction over the relevant case, to examine the relevant case for the extension of the period within the period prescribed by Presidential Decree, everytime it is intended to extend the period of hospitalization or admission:
1. Where there is a consensus among two or more psychiatrists who work for different mental medical institutions or mental health sanatoriums (including at least one psychiatrist who works for a national or public mental medical institution or mental health sanatorium under Article 21 or 22 or a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium designated by the Minister of Health and Welfare) on the necessity for extending the period of hospitalization or admission for medical treatment;
2. Where two or more legal guardians under paragraph (1) (hereinafter referred to as "legal guardians requested") (or one legal guardian, if only one legal guardian requested at the time an application for hospitalization or admission was filed under paragraph (1)) submit written consent to extend the period of hospitalization or admission under paragraph (5).
(7) Upon receipt of notice of an order for discharge or temporary discharge, etc. (referring to a measure to determine whether to hospitalize or readmit a person after the lapse of a certain period subsequent to temporary discharge, etc.; hereinafter the same shall apply) under Article 59 (including cases to which the afore-said Article shall apply mutatis mutandis pursuant to Article 61 (2)) from a Special Self-Governing City Mayor, a Special Self-Governing Province Governor, or the head of a Si/Gun/Gu, whoever has jurisdiction over the relevant case with regard to a request for examination to extend the period of hospitalization or admission under paragraph (6), the head of a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium shall discharge or temporarily discharge the relevant mentally ill person without delay.
(8) When the head of a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium hospitalizes or admits a person or extends the period of hospitalization or admission of a person under any provision of paragraphs (1) and (3) through (5), he or she shall promptly give written notice thereof and grounds therefor to the hospitalized or admitted person and the person's legal guardian.
(9) Upon receipt of a discharge application from a hospitalized or admitted person or the legal guardian of such person, the head of a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium shall discharge the person without delay; provided, the head of a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium may deny discharge, if the hospitalized or admitted person meets each of the criteria of paragraph (2).
(10) When the head of a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium discharges a hospitalized or admitted person under the main clause of paragraph (9), he or she shall give written notice thereof to the legal guardian of the person without delay, while the head of a mental medical institution or a mental health sanatorium denies discharge under the proviso of Article 9, he or she shall, without delay, give written notice of the denial of discharge, grounds for denial, the right to file a petition for the examination for discharge under Article 55, and the procedure for filing such petition to the mentally ill person and the legal guardian who has applied for discharge.
(11) If the relevant region lacks mental medical institutions, mental health sanatoriums, or psychiatrists, a different detailed implementation plan shall be formulated with regard to the requirement of examination by two or more psychiatrists who work for different mental medical institutions or mental health sanatoriums under paragraph (4) or (6) 1, as prescribed by Decree of the Ministry of Health and Welfare.