Medical Emancipation From Parents

[Crescendo]

This isn't a definite thing, but my parents and I had an argument earlier that made me consider pursuing medical emancipation from my parents. I have multiple mental health issues that include me being suicidal (have never attempted to kill myself) and self harming behaviors. I am never outwardly violent, I do not use any illegal substances, and my parents and I get along well. However today I was supposed to see my psychiatrist (a 45 minute drive away) which my mom hadn't reminded me of in a few days, and we would have had to leave a few minutes after getting off of the school bus (a 45 minute ride). I explained that I did not want to go because of the long ride, and because I just had a medication change done over the phone a few days ago and do not want another medication change so quickly. Because my psychiatrist pretty strictly sticks to the pharmaceutical end of things and does not do any therapy, I thought that going would be a waste of time. My parents (both doctors themselves) argued that I needed to go or he wouldn't keep prescribing my medications, and I told them that was fine, that a few months ago the plan was to get off of all my meds anyway. My Dad said I "have" to take meds. And although I think if I sort out my ideas, and calmly communicate my opinion they will not force me to take medication, I wanted to know, what happens if they do? I couldn't find much information about medical emancipation online. (I'm 17 and live in NJ)
Thanks,
Megan

[kathryn]

Hello! I live in NJ as well and to be honest I wouldn't waste your time with it... I've never really thought of 'medical emancipation' but if you think about it, by the time you fought with them about it legally, you'd probably be 18 by then! I can say from personal experiences that more or less it's up to the doctors discretion. When I was about 4 months shy of my 18th birthday I went to the doctors for a cat bite (I work in an animal shelter and a stray cat got me)... well the doctor made me call my mom and get her on the phone before she would look at my hand and give me some antibiotics

But yet, my OBGYN recently disclosed to me they will treat any patient over the age of 13 without parents being present. I'm sure they have a limit to what they can do, but I went and received depo-provera injections and had consultations without my mom being present once we found out about that.

Honestly, it is my understanding they can not force you to receive any medical treatment you do not want if you are not a danger to yourself or others. I would really recommend you talk with them about your feelings, and ask to switch to a new therapist. That way it doesn't look like you are giving up (which may scare them) but that you just want a new doctor.

I hope that helps and maybe someone else can cite some actual laws.. but in NJ I've found minors have a decent amount of rights.

[losing touch.]

if it was a physical illness rather than a mental illness i think it would be a lot easier for you to refuse the treatment. if you did pursue this they would evaluate your mental health and whether they deemed you of sound mind enough to make a decision like this. as you say you have mental health problems, you might not be able to pursue this on technicalities because they could say that you're mentally ill and therefore unable to make a decision for yourself.

i never knew that you had to be 18 to be able to consent or decline medical treatment in the US.. so i'm assuming that this is the case?.. in the UK if you're over 16 and deemed able to make a decision for yourself then you can refuse treatment and your parents can't do anything about it.. i don't see why it should be any different in the US. hmm.

[Loving Linux Penguin]

^In the United States, generally minors cannot refuse medical treatment if their parents want them to go through with it. This doesn't always apply, and some states do it differently then others. However, someone who's seventeen would probably be recognized for the most part as being able to make good decisions, as they aren't that far from being officially considered an adult, so exceptions can probably be made in this case.

Is the legal age in the UK 16?

[losing touch.]

Originally Posted by cwkguy

^In the United States, generally minors cannot refuse medical treatment if their parents want them to go through with it. This doesn't always apply, and some states do it differently then others. However, someone who's seventeen would probably be recognized for the most part as being able to make good decisions, as they aren't that far from being officially considered an adult, so exceptions can probably be made in this case.

Is the legal age in the UK 16?

well i just looked it up and it says that it's 18.. but this is weird because at the hospital i'm treated at they take the age to consent/decline treatment to be 16. i know this for sure because i've declined treatment and my parents were not allowed to override my decision and were told they would have to get a court order for me to have the treatment [which they didn't do.] so either my parents were given wrong information or the law isn't really implemented. hmm, i'm really confused now though since it says on the NHS website that if you're under 18 and decline treatment that the parents can override the decision. weird.

[Loving Linux Penguin]

Hmm. Yeah, that is strange, but in the US as a general rule, the age to decline is 18.

[kathryn]

It is very weird here. I could (I'm 18 but just go along with me as an example) go and get birth control and whatnot but I drive myself to the doctors for a cat bite and suddenly I need parental consent?

It makes no sense. Some doctors want your parents consent.. some doctors want your parents with you at the appointment.

Also when I went to followup with my orthopedic doctor when I broke my foot, it was honestly less then a week before my 18th birthday and I still had to have my mom with me. I wasn't even getting anything done! It was just an x-ray re-check.

Oh, and I've also gone and had x-rays done without my mom being present as well. But for bloodwork I had to have someone with me?

I'm just glad I'm 18 now so I can stop having to randomly drag my mom to doctors appointments with me

I think the laws or more or less designed to keep you from doing certain things... like elective surgeries for example. I don't think there are laws that specifically force you to follow the treatment your parents want for you if you are not in immediate danger. It's all very confusing if you think about it.

[Loving Linux Penguin]

^That doesn't make sense. If you're 18 and live in the US, you can consent for ANY medical treatment on your own. Your doctors are just downright wrong.

[cutiepiex3]

For me, I won't be 18 until next month. However, at the OBGYN they made me sign a form telling what they could and could not disclose to my mom. I have been able to go there by myself the whole time. At my dermatoligist (sp?) i can go there alone IF my mom calls ahead and tells them. At my regular doctor however, you MUST have parental consent for them to even LOOK at you if you are under 18.