Utah Code 26B-5-508. Seventy-two-hour emergency treatment pending a final court order

26B-5-508. Seventy-two-hour emergency treatment pending a final court order.

(1)

A court may order a respondent to be hospitalized for up to 72 hours if:

Terms Used In Utah Code 26B-5-508

Essential treatment examiner: means :

(a)	a licensed physician, preferably a psychiatrist, who is designated by the division as specifically qualified by training or experience in the diagnosis of substance use disorder; or

(b)

a licensed mental health professional designated by the division as specially qualified by training and who has at least five years' continual experience in the treatment of substance use disorder. See Utah Code 26B-5-501

Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.

Serious harm: means the individual, due to substance use disorder, is at serious risk of:

(a)	drug overdose;

(b)

suicide;

(c)	serious bodily self-injury;

(d)	serious bodily injury because the individual is incapable of providing the basic necessities of life, including food, clothing, or shelter; or

(e)	causing or attempting to cause serious bodily injury to another individual. See Utah Code 26B-5-501 Substance use disorder: means the same as that term is defined in the current edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders published by the American Psychiatric Association. See Utah Code 26B-5-501
(a)	an essential treatment examiner has examined the respondent and certified that the respondent meets the criteria described in Section 26B-5-504; and

(b)	the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that the respondent presents an imminent threat of serious harm to self or others as a result of a substance use disorder.

(2)	An individual who is admitted to a hospital under this section shall be released from the hospital within 72 hours after admittance, unless a treating physician or essential treatment examiner determines that the individual continues to pose an imminent threat of serious harm to self or others.

(3)

If a treating physician or essential treatment examiner makes the determination described in Subsection (2), the individual may be detained for as long as the threat of serious harm remains imminent, but not more than 10 days after the day on which the individual was hospitalized, unless a court orders otherwise.

(4)	A treating physician or an essential treatment examiner shall, as frequently as practicable, examine an individual hospitalized under this section and release the individual if it is determined that a threat of imminent serious harm no longer exists.

Renumbered and Amended by Chapter 308, 2023 General Session

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