An individual may be taken to a receiving facility for involuntary examination under the Baker Act if:

• There is reason to believe he/she has a mental illness and due to the mental illness, the individual has refused or is unable to determine if examination is necessary; and either;
• Without care or treatment, the individual is unlikely to care for themselves which can result in substantial harm to their well-being, and it is not evident that harm can be avoided through familial intervention or other services; or
• It is likely, based on recent behavior, that without treatment, the individual will pose a serious threat to themselves or others.

Language Matters

• Stigma causes individuals to feel shame and keeps them from seeking help. Here are a few helpful things that we can do to reduce stigma around mental illness.

Helpful

• Describing someone as ‘living with’ or ‘diagnosed with’ a mental illness.
• Using adjectives like ‘unusual’ or ‘erratic’ when describing behavior.
• Using psychiatric or medical terminology correctly and in the proper context.

Unhelpful

• Using words like ‘crazy’, ‘psycho’, ‘schizo”, or ‘lunatic’ to describe a person with a mental illness.
• Using words like ‘crazed’, ‘deranged’, ‘mad’, ‘psychotic’ to describe unusual or erratic behavior.
• Using diagnoses out of context as with ‘psychotic dog’, or using ‘schizophrenic’ to denote duality.