Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards

Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards

This Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) Mental Health Assessor elearning programme is now available for use by qualifying doctors. The elearning programme has been extensively revised and updated and has been released as part of a collaboration between Health Education England, the Department of Health and the Royal College of Psychiatrists. The programme replaces any previous training on DoLS for specialist assessors, by Health Education England elearning for healthcare.

A more general training session on DoLS is appropriate for all health and social care professionals. This is available within the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) e-lfh programme.

Before proceeding to this training programme, please check that you fit the criteria of doctors who are eligible to carry out the mental health assessment under the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. The relevant regulations state:

Eligibility to carry out a mental health assessment

1. A person is eligible to carry out a mental health assessment if paragraphs (2) and (3) are met
2. The person must be:
   a) approved under section 12 of the Mental Health Act 1983; or
   b) a registered medical practitioner who the supervisory body is satisfied has at least three years post registration experience in the diagnosis or treatment of mental disorder
3. The supervisory body must be satisfied that the person has successfully completed the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards Mental Health Assessors training programme made available by the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

Note that successful completion of the two tests integral to this programme is a requirement for any doctor to practise as a DoLS mental health assessor.

How to complete the elearning

DoLS are an integral part of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) and it is essential that doctors who are qualified to be DoLS mental health assessors have a good practical knowledge of the MCA. The MCA Test of Understanding has been created as part of the DoLS programme and all users must complete and successfully pass the test before moving on to the DoLS elearning resource.

Users will also need to complete and pass the DoLS Test of Understanding once they have completed the elearning training programme. Only when a user has successfully completed and passed both the MCA and DoLS tests will they be able to generate a certificate, which can be presented to a supervisory body as evidence that they have satisfactorily completed the DoLS online mental health assessor training programme as outlined in regulations.

More information

The role of the mental health assessor is an important statutory role. Once doctors have successfully completed and passed the training, they are eligible to play an essential part in a process designed to protect the rights of vulnerable people who lack capacity to make their own decisions about their accommodation for care or treatment. Depending on the outcome of assessments carried out by the mental health assessor, and also by the best interests assessor, a person’s deprivation of liberty may be authorised as being lawful and in their best interests.

The DoLS training programme is made up of a pre-test on the MCA followed by five DoLS knowledge sessions and finally a post-test on DoLS. The test and sessions should be completed in the following order:

1. MCA Test of Understanding (753-017) a user must pass with a satisfactory score of 85% or more, before moving on to:
2. DoLS: Legal and Process Overview (753-012), which must be completed before moving on to:
   • The Best Interests, Age and No Refusal Assessments (753-013)
   • The Mental Capacity Assessment (753-014)
   • The Mental Health Assessment (753-015)
   • The Eligibility Assessment (753-016)
3. DoLS: Test of Understanding (753-018) which again a user must pass with a satisfactory score of 85% or more in order to attain the DoLS certificate. This can then be presented to a DoLS supervisory body as evidence of successful completion of the elearning course.

The writers of this new training programme have extensive practical and theoretical knowledge of DoLS; all teach and advise extensively on this area. They include an experienced psychiatrist and mental health assessor, a best interests assessor who is also an approved mental health professional and a lawyer specialising in the Mental Health Act (MHA) and the Mental Capacity Act (MCA). They have been further supported by a former DoLS lead who is a member of the leadership group of the new National Mental Capacity Forum.

Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards - elearning for healthcare