Eleanor Riese Explained

Eleanor Jeanne Riese
Birth Date:	September 4, 1943
Birth Place:	San Francisco, California, U.S
Death Date:	April 6, 1991
Death Place:	San Francisco, California, U.S
Known For:	Class-action lawsuit against the St. Mary's Hospital in San Francisco

Eleanor Riese (1943 - 1991) was an American patient who sued a hospital for her right to refuse antipsychotic medication.^[1] The court decision significantly changed the approach to psychiatric patients.^[2]

Biography

Riese was diagnosed with schizophrenia when she was 25 years old.

Lawsuit

In 1985, Riese led a class-action lawsuit against the St. Mary's Hospital in San Francisco. Her lawyers argued that during her stay there Riese developed symptoms caused by antipsychotic medication she did not consent to.^[3]

The lawsuit was highly remarkable for its time, and it quickly went national, attracting the attention of advocacy groups and organizations such as the American Psychiatric Association and the American Psychological Association. Finally, in 1987, California Court of Appeals in a unanimous ruling about Riese v. St. Mary’s Hospital and Medical Center suit decided that antipsychotic medications "may not be prescribed to involuntarily committed mental patients in non-emergency situations without their informed consent".^[4]

In culture

Riese's life was depicted in the 2017 film 55 Steps by Bille August.

See also

• Frances Farmer
• Nellie Bly
• Lanterman–Petris–Short Act
• Involuntary treatment
• Patient abuse
• Controversies about psychiatry

Notes and References

1. Web site: Bishop . Katherine . Court Rules Mental Patients May Reject Forced Drugging (Published 1987) . . 7 August 2023 . en . 22 December 1987.
2. Web site: Rubin . Jane . The forcible administration of anti-psychotic medications to involuntarily detained patients: An empirical study of clinical judgments of dangerousness in the aftermath of the Riese decision . ProQuest . 7 August 2023 . en.
3. Web site: Schuster . Sarah . New Movie Examines Issue in Psychiatric Hospitals We Don't Talk About Enough . The Mighty . 7 August 2023 . en . 8 May 2023.
4. Web site: Involuntary medications: Riese v. St. Mary's Case Summary . Mental Illness Policy Org . 7 August 2023.