Forensic psychiatry

Abstract

Forensic psychiatry derives the ethics of the subspecialty from a review of its historical evolution. From its early origins in community psychiatry to its contemporary applications in cultural narrative and human rights, forensic ethics has come to recognize multiple perspectives in its theory and practice. Tools like narrative, cultural assessment, and self-reflection now characterize a professional ethics that adopts an integrative approach to the intersection of two very different value systems, those of Law and Medicine. As practitioners recognize the vulnerability of persons and values caught at this junction, innovative thinking about social justice and human rights enhances the ethical understanding of the profession’s goals and purpose.