The Medical Treatment of Patients Suffering from Eating Disorders (Anorexia Nervosa)

The aim of this study is to answer the question of whether the law allows for the coerced hospitalization and treatment of adult and non-incapacitated patients suffering from eating disorders. Th e analysis concerns anorexia nervosa as one of the most serious and dangerous of these disorders due to its high mortality. The considerations include two groups of provisions: Articles 30 and 33 of the Act on the Professions of Doctor and Dentist (Sejm of the Republic of Poland, 1996) and Articles 23–24 of the Act on Mental Health Protection (Sejm of the Republic of Poland, 1994). The author concludes that under the later Act, anorexic patients cannot be admitted to hospital against their will because they are not mentally ill; according to the view of most doctors, anorexia is not an illness but a disorder. Th e study ends with conclusions and de lege ferenda remarks (proposals for changes to the Act on Mental Health Protection).