PRESUMPTION OF CAPACITY

The starting point when assessing capacity is always to presume that a person has capacity to make the decision.  However, the assessment will be taking place because a reason exists to question the presumption of capacity. The capacity assessment is an examination of the person’s decision-making process.

Clinicians need to be alert to triggers that question the person’s capacity for the present decision and the reasons why they are being asked to assess a person’s capacity. 


  © 2019 Alison Douglass