(2) If a person who has attained his majority wishes to submit himself informally to treatment for mental
disorder or intellectual handicap, he may on written application —
(a) be received and detained without a reception order as an informal patient—
(i) in any institution; or
(ii) in any hospital, nursing-home or other place which is authorized in terms of section forty-six to
receive such patients;
or
(b) be received into the charge of a person authorized by the Secretary to receive him as a patient in single
care.
(3) If the parent or guardian of a person who has not attained his majority wishes that person to be treated
informally for mental disorder or intellectual handicap, that person may, on written application by the parent or
guardian—
(a) be received and detained without a reception order as an informal patient—
(i) in any institution; or
(ii) in any hospital, nursing-home or other place which is authorized in terms of section forty-six to
receive such patients;
or
(b) be received into the charge of a person authorized by the Secretary to receive him as a patient in single
care;
but the patient shall not be so received on his own application.
(4) An application by a parent or guardian in terms of subsection (3) shall be accompanied by a medical
recommendation which—
(a) is signed by—
(i) a medical practitioner who has attended the patient for at least three months before the date of
the recommendation; or
(ii) a medical practitioner, psychiatric nurse practitioner, designated psychiatric nurse, designated
social worker or designated clinical psychologist who is employed by the State or a local
authority;
and
(b) states—
(i) the qualifications of the medical practitioner or other person who has signed it; and
(ii) the date or dates on which the medical practitioner or other person who has signed it examined
the patient: and
(iii) that the patient is likely to benefit by being received informally and treated for mental disorder
or intellectual handicap under this section.
(5) A medical recommendation shall cease to have effect for the purposes of subsection (4) fourteen days
after the person who signed the recommendation last examined the patient for the purpose of making the
recommendation.
48 Notice of reception, death, departure or discharge of informal patients
(1) The superintendent of an institution or other place into which a person has been received as an informal
patient shall, before the end of the second day after the day on which he was so received, inform the Secretary, in
writing, of the patients reception.
(2) If a patient received into all institution or other place as an informal patient dies in, leaves or disappears
from that institution or place, the superintendent of the institution or place shall, before the end of the second day
after the day of its occurrence, inform the Secretary, in writing, of the patient’s death, departure or disappearance.
(3) Where an informal patient is discharged in terms of section twenty-four from the institution or other place
into which he was received under this Part, the superintendent of the institution or place shall inform the
Secretary, in writing, of the discharge not later than ten days after discharging the patient.
49 Departure of informal patients, from institution or place
(1) In this section—
“guardian”, in relation to a person who has not attained his majority, includes anyone who has charge of that
person.
(2) Subject to subsections (3) and (4), an informal patient may leave the institution or other place in which he
is being detained—
(a) if he has attained his majority, upon giving the superintendent of the institution or other place at least
one week’s written notice of his intention to do so; or
(b) if he has not attained his majority, upon his parent or guardian giving the superintendent of the
institution or other place at least one week’s notice written of the intention to do so:
Provided that the superintendent may permit the patient to leave on less than one week’s notice.
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