Diritti fondamentali e contenzione nelle emergenze psichiatriche

Recourse to restraint in psychiatric emergencies is of particular concern with regard to patients’ rights enshrined in the Italian Constitution, in the European Convention on Human Rights, and in several international documents and bodies of law. The essay surveys the relevant constitutional and international principles, and Italian legislation currently in force. It concludes that restraint may be enacted only when explicitly provided by law, within the framework of coercive placement and treatment under criminal or healthcare law. Beyond such cases, restraint is never lawful, although its enactment may be exempt from criminal punishment if it is justified by necessity as an emergency measure of last resort. In any case, respect for human dignity must be guaranteed; this requires strict compliance with legal and professional standards, including those established in international documents such as the standards of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture.