Idaho, for the hospitalist. There is more than one kind — pick the pathway you're weighing and you'll get its criteria, the common misconceptions, and a step-by-step. (No "pink slip"/"white slip" — those are other states.)
Educational decision-support — not legal advice. Statutes and facility policy change; verify against the current Idaho Code and your institution. For any real case, involve on-call psychiatry, your designated examiner, and the prosecuting attorney / risk-legal as required.
Tap the situation you're actually facing. Everything below re-scopes to it.
Tap a case for the reasoning and the right pathway.
Mental illness + imminent danger to others. If he won't stay voluntarily → emergency hold; document threat, target, means, immediacy.
Danger to self from a mental-health crisis, act already taken. Hold pending psych eval; 1:1, remove means.
Mental illness + grave disability. Emergency hold, then examination.
Intoxication alone is excluded (§66-329). Keep safe under implied consent / capacity, use security for behavior, reassess when sober.
Medical / lacks-capacity pathwayA neurocognitive disorder alone is excluded. Capacity assessment → surrogate decision-maker → guardianship. Not a psych hold.
Delirium is medical, not mental illness. Treat the cause under emergency/implied consent; §66-326 does not apply.
Voluntary admission is preferred. Note: on a written request to leave, the facility may hold up to 3 business days to examine / file for continued care.
Not an emergency (no active prong). A deteriorating pattern is the judicial route — §66-329, which can be court-ordered outpatient.
Idaho civil mental-health pathways for inpatient use. Educational aid only — not legal, clinical, or compliance advice; verify against the current statutes and your facility policy, and involve psychiatry / legal for real cases.
Sources: Idaho Code §§66-317, 66-320, 66-323, 66-326, 66-329, 66-346, 66-402/406; 39-4504; Title 15 (guardianship); Title 18 (forensic).
· Back to Tools · Med Topo home