Over 1,000 ECT treatments were given without consent in New Zealand between 2022-2023, with the Human Rights Commission opposed to the practice. Advocates say patients suffer permanent memory loss and the 'lack of capacity' category is being abused to avoid genuine consent requirements.
The scale—1,091 involuntary treatments given to 113 people in one year—and the permanent consequences make this a genuinely confronting human rights story that most New Zealanders don't know is happening, according to detailed documentation from mental health advocates.
Mate, this is one of those stories that sounds like it belongs in a different era. But electroconvulsive therapy without consent is happening right now in New Zealand, and the numbers are staggering.
ECT involves passing electrical current through someone's brain with the goal of causing convulsions. Proponents argue it can be effective for severe depression when other treatments fail. Critics point to permanent memory loss, cognitive damage, and questionable efficacy beyond the immediate term.
The controversy isn't about ECT itself—though that's debated—but about giving it to people without their consent. Under New Zealand law, ECT can be administered involuntarily if patients are deemed to lack the capacity to consent to treatment.
That "lack of capacity" category is where the problems arise. Advocates argue it's being used too broadly, bundling patients who actively refuse treatment with those genuinely unable to understand the decision. Not consenting and lacking capacity to consent should be different things.
The Human Rights Commission has stated its opposition to involuntary ECT, a significant position for a government watchdog. The HRC's stance reflects serious concerns about whether current practices meet human rights standards.
The permanent consequences are what make this particularly troubling. Advocates describe patients who can no longer recognize family members, who have huge gaps in their childhood memories, who've lost years of their lives to ECT-induced amnesia.
One advocate described meeting a friend after treatment who couldn't recognize them for a week. The same friend has permanent memory loss affecting her ability to remember her own family. For someone who didn't consent to the treatment, that's a devastating violation.
