Psychiatric assessment

One of the key tasks of the service system for forensic psychiatry is to provide psychiatric assessments as directed by the courts. Psychiatric assessments are needed to assess the criminal liability of a person accused or suspected of having committed an offence. Criminal liability is a key concept in the penal code and forensic psychiatry which almost all judicial practices around the world recognize as a condition for punishability.

Criminal liability is affected by a person's ability to understand the true nature, illegality, and consequences of the act under indictment, and the ability to control his or her own conduct. Liability can be reduced by some psychiatric and neurological diseases, as well as intellectual disability.

The psychiatric assessment is conducted by a working group consisting of a psychiatrist, psychologist, neuropsychologist, social worker, occupational therapist, and nursing staff. The assessment will take about two months. Almost all psychiatric assessments are conducted on a hospital ward.

We conduct psychiatric assessments in our HUS enhanced inpatient care and forensic psychiatry unit.