Decision-making in practice

Abstract Accepting all of the theory already described concerning how decisions are, should, and should not be taken, what advice can be offered on practical clinical decision-making, whether it is directed at clinical intervention or at assisting lawyers and courts, to address defined legal questions? It might be thought that all that needs to be written here is, ‘follow the rules of ordinary good clinical psychiatric practice’. However, as we have already suggested, all medical practice is subject to both heuristics and bias, as well as to the role of values, and all—but particularly the latter—is especially so in a forensic context. This chapter builds on A.1: Decision-making theories to put the background into practice. It covers clinical decision-making in both clinical and clinic-legal practice, as well as clinico-legal questions to ask yourself when coming to decisions.