Therapeutic leave from secure mental health inpatient services: a review

I am delighted to have been invited to contribute a paper to this liber amicorum for Prof. dr. Frans Koenraadt in honour of his lifetime’s contribution to clinical and theoretical advances in forensic psychology, law, mental health, and education. I first had the pleasure of meeting Frans in Toronto when both he, I, and Lydia Dalhuisen, Frans’ then PhD student, were all presenting work on firesetters and firesetting. Our mutual interest led to further contact and an invitation was extended to me to join the examination panel for Dr Dalhuisen’s PhD thesis defence in Utrecht, a fascinating experience for me since it is not our tradition in the UK to conduct such a public defence. Since then, I have read with great interest and admiration the outputs of the PhD. It was my impression that Prof. Koenraadt provided a highly constructive and flexible educational experience which allowed the PhD room to breathe and grow. My acquaintance with Frans has been short, but I can say with sincerity that his natural curiosity, intellectual openness, and willingness to share his vast accumulated knowledge should serve as a model for us all. In this spirit of sharing, my colleague, EmilyMay Barlow, and I have chosen to address an issue which we feel passionate about. It is also an issue that lies firmly in those intersections between law, criminality, psychology, risk, and clinical practice in which Prof. Koenraadt excels. That issue is the use of therapeutic leave by patients in secure, forensic mental health care.