The use of leverage in community mental health: ethical guidance for practitioners.

Background: Leverage is a particular type of treatment pressure that is used within community mental health services to increase patients' adherence to treatment. Because leverage involves practitioners making proposals that attempt to influence patients' behaviours and choices, the use of leverage raises ethical issues.

Aim: To provide guidance that can assist practitioners in making judgements about whether it is ethically acceptable to use leverage in a particular clinical context.