(a) Electroconvulsive or other convulsive therapy may be initiated prior to a court hearing under §§ 33-8-305 – 33-8-313, if the petitioner files a petition with the court having jurisdiction of the child‘s commitment under chapter 6, part 5 of this title, if the proceeding is pending, or otherwise files a petition in the juvenile court where the child resides, was committed to state custody, or may be found.
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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 33-8-309

  • Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
  • Child: means a person who is under eighteen (18) years of age. See Tennessee Code 33-1-101
  • Hospital: means a public or private hospital or facility or part of a hospital or facility equipped to provide inpatient care and treatment for persons with mental illness or serious emotional disturbance. See Tennessee Code 33-1-101
  • 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.
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Support: means any activity or resource that enables a service recipient to participate in a service for mental illness or serious emotional disturbance or in community life. See Tennessee Code 33-1-101
  • Treatment resource: means any public or private facility, service, or program providing treatment or rehabilitation services for mental illness or serious emotional disturbance, including, but not limited to, detoxification centers, hospitals, community mental health centers, clinics or programs, halfway houses, and rehabilitation centers. See Tennessee Code 33-1-101
(b) The petition shall be verified by the mental health professional, hospital or treatment resource seeking authorization to administer the therapy and shall state the nature of the therapy for which authorization is sought, and the facts upon which the petitioner relies to support the claim that it has been determined under § 33-8-302 that the convulsive therapy may be necessary for the child.
(c)

(1) Attached to the petition shall be an affidavit from a child psychiatrist, who shall be child and adolescent certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, stating that:

(A) It has been determined under § 33-8-302 that the convulsive therapy may be necessary for the child; and
(B) There is insufficient time to complete the procedure provided by §§ 33-8-305-33-8-313, and therefore treatment prior to a court hearing is necessary.
(2) The affidavit shall provide the specific factual, medical and clinical basis supporting the requirements of this section.
(d) The child psychiatrist shall personally examine the child within twenty-four (24) hours of the filing of the petition.
(e) The child psychiatrist shall not be in a professional practice or association with the attending physician, nor have any direct financial interest in any private hospital or treatment resource in which the child is to be detained or receive therapy.
(f) If the petition and affidavit have been filed in conformity with this section, electroconvulsive or other convulsive therapy may be initiated. Electroconvulsive or other convulsive therapy shall be discontinued immediately when any of the conditions required under §§ 33-8-302(1) and (2) and 33-8- 303(1) that justified the therapy are no longer true.
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