What Form 19 is for
Section 36 of BC’s Mental Health Act lets the director discharge a patient from a designated facility. A discharged person can ask for a certificate of discharge, and the director must provide one, signed, in the prescribed form. Form 19 is that certificate. It names the patient, the facility and the date of discharge.
Discharge also ends the effect of every application, certificate and warrant made before it, so a later admission starts again with a Form 4.1.
Who completes it
The director of the designated facility, or a person they have authorized, completes and signs it. The patient doesn’t sign. A community physician sees Form 19 mostly when a patient asks how to get one, or brings a copy to an appointment.
How to fill in the certificate
Patient, facility and date
Print the patient’s first and last name, the designated facility and the discharge date. Use the date of actual discharge, which can differ from the date the decision was made.
Director’s signature
The director signs, dates and prints their name.
Common reasons it’s delayed
- The request goes to the community physician instead of the facility.
- The discharge date doesn’t match the facility record.
- Signed by someone without the director’s authority.
Submitting and who pays
The director gives the certificate to the former patient or the person who applied for them. The Act doesn’t mention a fee for it.