The Psychiatric Report: Principles and Practice of Forensic Writing

Front Cover
Alec Buchanan, Michael A. Norko
Cambridge University Press, Jul 7, 2011 - Medical
The written report is central to the practice of psychiatry in legal settings. It is required of mental health professionals acting as expert witnesses in criminal cases, civil litigation situations, child custody proceedings and risk assessments. This book provides a theoretical background to psychiatric writing for the law and a practical guide to the preparation of the report. The first section addresses practical and ethical concerns, including the conduct of the forensic psychiatric evaluation, conflicts of interest, record keeping and confidentiality. The second section contains practical and detailed advice on preparing various types of report, including reports for use in criminal and civil litigation, civil commitment hearings and child custody proceedings. A final section covers special issues arising during report preparation including the use of psychological tests and the detection of malingering. This is an essential guide for anyone required to write a psychiatric report.
 

Contents

Introduction
1
Section 1 Principles of writing
11
2 Preparation
22
3 Confidentiality and record keeping
35
4 Ethics
56
5 Writing a narrative
68
6 Draftsmanship
81
Section 2 Structure and content
93
12 Child custody
158
disability and fitness
172
Section 3 Special issues
187
15 Incorporating psychological testing
201
16 Reasonable medical certainty
214
17 Violence risk assessment
224
18 Malingering
240
19 Psychiatry and ethics in UK criminal sentencing
254

8 Criminal litigation
98
9 Civil litigation
112
10 Civil and sexoffender commitment
128
11 Competency to practice and licensing
145
Conclusion
264
Index
270
Copyright

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About the author (2011)

Alec Buchanan is Professor, Division of Law and Psychiatry, Yale University Department of Psychiatry, New Haven, CT, USA.

Michael A. Norko is Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Division of Law and Psychiatry, Yale University Department of Psychiatry, New Haven, CT, USA.

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