Terms Used In New Hampshire Revised Statutes > Chapter 135-C - New Hampshire Mental Health Services System

• Absolute discharge: means the final and complete discharge of a mentally ill patient from any form of treatment by the department. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Administrator: means the superintendent, executive director, or other chief administrative officer of any facility or of any community mental health program operated under the supervision of the commissioner. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Advanced practice registered nurse: or "APRN" means an advanced practice registered nurse licensed by the board of nursing who is certified as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner by a board-recognized national certifying body. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• APRN: means an advanced practice registered nurse licensed by the board of nursing who is certified as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner by a board-recognized national certifying body. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Behavioral health crisis programs: means the continuum of services to address crisis intervention, crisis stabilization, and crisis residential treatment needs of those with a mental health and/or substance use disorder crisis that are person-first, wellness, resiliency, and recovery oriented. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Commissioner: means the commissioner of the department of health and human services. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Community mental health program: means a program established and administered by the state, city, town, or county, or a nonprofit corporation for the purpose of providing mental health services to the residents of the area and which minimally provides emergency, medical or psychiatric screening and evaluation, case management, and psychotherapy services. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Conditional discharge: means the release of an involuntarily admitted person from a receiving facility on the condition that the person accept treatment in the community or be subject to readmission. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Department: means the department of health and human services. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• following: when used by way of reference to any section of these laws, shall mean the section next preceding or following that in which such reference is made, unless some other is expressly designated. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:13
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
• Habeas corpus: A writ that is usually used to bring a prisoner before the court to determine the legality of his imprisonment. It may also be used to bring a person in custody before the court to give testimony, or to be prosecuted.
• Informed decision: means a choice made by a client or person seeking to be admitted who has the ability to make such a choice and who makes it voluntarily after all relevant information necessary to making the decision has been provided, and who understands that he is free to choose or refuse any available alternative, and who clearly indicates or expresses his choice. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• justice: when applied to a magistrate, shall mean a justice of a municipal court, or a justice of the peace having jurisdiction over the subject-matter. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:12
• Mental illness: means a substantial impairment of emotional processes, or of the ability to exercise conscious control of one's actions, or of the ability to perceive reality or to reason, when the impairment is manifested by instances of extremely abnormal behavior or extremely faulty perceptions. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Neglect: means an act or omission which results or could result in the deprivation of essential services or supports necessary to maintain the minimum mental, emotional, or physical health and safety of an incapacitated adult. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• person: may extend and be applied to bodies corporate and politic as well as to individuals. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:9
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• petition: when used in connection with the equity jurisdiction of the superior court, and referring to a document filed with the court, shall mean complaint, and "petitioner" shall mean plaintiff. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:51
• petitioner: shall mean plaintiff. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:51
• Physician: means a medical doctor licensed to practice in New Hampshire. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Physician assistant: or "PA" means a physician assistant licensed to practice in New Hampshire. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
• Probate: Proving a will
• Psychiatrist: means a physician licensed to practice in New Hampshire who is either board certified or board eligible according to the most recent regulations of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, Inc. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Receiving facility: means a treatment facility which is designated by the commissioner to accept for care, custody, and treatment persons involuntarily admitted to the state mental health services system. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Severely mentally disabled: means having a mental illness which is either so acute or of such duration as to cause a substantial impairment of a person's ability to care for himself or to function normally in society in accordance with rules authorized by N. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Sexual orientation: means having or being perceived as having an orientation for heterosexuality, bisexuality, or homosexuality. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:49
• state: when applied to different parts of the United States, may extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories, so called; and the words "United States" shall include said district and territories. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:4
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• sworn: when applied to public officers required by the constitution to take oaths therein prescribed, shall refer to those oaths; when applied to other officers it shall mean sworn to the faithful discharge of the duties of their offices before a justice of the peace, or other person authorized to administer official oaths in such cases. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:25
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Transcript: A written, word-for-word record of what was said, either in a proceeding such as a trial or during some other conversation, as in a transcript of a hearing or oral deposition.
• Transitional housing program services: means a residential program that provides housing and support services to persons with serious and persistent mental illness through a contract with the department of health and human services. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Treatment: means examination, diagnosis, training, rehabilitation therapy, pharmaceuticals, and other services provided to clients in the mental health services system. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 135-C:2
• Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
• Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.