A ‘concerning’ rise in the number of young Scots receiving compulsory treatment is among the latest findings of the Mental Welfare Commission.

A report published today shows 6,038 new episodes of compulsory treatment occurred in Scotland last year – the highest figure since the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act came into force in 2003.

The new data also shows rising numbers of under-25s being given compulsory treatment.

For the first time, young women aged 18 to 24 experienced the highest rate of emergency detentions for any female age group – 185 detention certificates were issued last year, compared to 105 for the same age group in 2009-10.

Young men age 16 to 17 saw the greatest increase in rates of emergency detention per 100,000 of the population in the past year.

Both young men and women aged 16 to 17 have shown the greatest increase in the rate of emergency detention across the ten-year period.

There has also been a rise in the number of short-term detention certificates used in relation to young people, with a 122.5% increase among women aged under 25 since 2009-10.

The rates at which detention is used varies considerably across Scotland.

For the past ten years, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde continues to treat more people per rate of population than any other health board in Scotland using both emergency and short-term detention.

While still above average, NHS Dumfries and Galloway has seen a reduction in recent years in the use of emergency detention in particular.

The use of new compulsory treatment by Tayside’s health board has ‘risen markedly’ in the last two years the Commission states, and is above average for both emergency detention and short term detention.

NHS Highland, Ayrshire and Arran, Lanarkshire, Borders and Grampian all issue fewer detention certificates than the national average.

There are three forms of detention used in Scotland: emergency detention certificates for crisis care can last up to 72 hours, while short-term detentions last up to 28 days. Compulsory treatment orders can initially cover up to six months.

The report draws attention to application of the 2003 Act to minority ethnic individuals – 4% of Scotland’s population is minority ethnic but from monitoring forms returned to the Commission in the last year, 5.8% of detention certificates related to people from ethnic minorities.

Dr Moira Connolly, MWC interim executive medical director, said:

“These figures show a continued rise in the use of detention under the Mental Health Act in Scotland. Compulsory treatment can, of course, be essential for the assessment and treatment of a person who is very unwell, but it does restrict an individual’s rights, and must always be used with careful consideration.

“The variation in rates of use across the country is an issue we again highlight and invite health boards to examine.

“The rise in numbers of times detention is used in relation to young people is concerning. We already know of the increased number of children and young people seeking help for mental health issues, but we need to understand more about whether those pressures are now being reflected in our data regarding compulsory hospital treatment.

“The Commission hopes that these issues, and other details emerging from this report, will be considered by the government as they take forward the reform of Scotland’s Mental Health Act.”

Detentions are supposed to take place with the consent of a specialist social worker, known as a mental health officer, but the rates where this happens vary greatly and the MWC has expressed concerns over the methods being used to carry out an emergency detention.

In Dumfries and Galloway compliance was at 83% and in Greater Glasgow and Clyde only 33%.

Dr Connolly added: “The consent of a mental health officer in these cases is an important safeguard for the individual. The low rates in some areas are a real concern for us and we hope that our data will be taken into account by the government and by health boards, local authorities and integrated joint boards, with whom we will continue to raise it.”