19 Jul 2022

Capacity Assessments: What are they and how can Speed Medical help?

Whether it’s due to an acquired brain injury, a disease, or a mental health condition, there are instances where individuals may be unable to make decisions that are in their best interest, or that they would otherwise make had their decision-making ability not been impaired. In these instances, a capacity assessment is necessary to decipher whether a third party, such as a power of attorney, needs to be involved in any decisions regarding health, welfare, finances, or property.

 

Who Might Need a Capacity Assessment?

When people sustain an injury or have deteriorating health, their capacity to make decisions can diminish. This is common in diseases such as terminal cancer, dementia, brain injury, and certain mental health conditions.

The subject of capacity can be a particularly sensitive thing to broach with individuals, as facing the fact that they may no longer be able to decide what’s right for them can be very difficult to deal with. Working with experienced clinicians is imperative to making the whole process as stress-free as possible while ensuring you receive a thorough, accurate, and clinically sound report surrounding a person’s capacity.

 

Who Will Carry Out the Assessment?

Speed Medical’s independent clinicians are well versed in the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Justice Poole's ruling. Our clinicians are vastly experienced and approach all assessments with compassion, care and kindness allowing individuals to maintain dignity throughout the entire process. They will then provide a clear and concise report containing the results of the assessment.

 

What kind of Capacity Assessments do Speed Medical Offer?
Speed Medical offer several different capacity assessments including:

•  Health assessments - serious injury, care (elderly) and medical (other)
• Welfare assessments - social, accommodation and relationships
• Financial and legal assessments - capacity to gift, lasting power of attorney, property and finance management, capacity to litigate

 

If you would like more information about our capacity assessments or any of our other services, please get in touch with our friendly and experienced team.