I would also guess the person you originally responded to is European. I'm a Canadian child of German immigrants and the different attitudes towards mental ward

I would also guess the person you originally responded to is European. I'm a Canadian child of German immigrants and the different attitudes towards mental wards on the two continents is striking. That said, the kind of abuses ryacko described are real, even if there are fewer incentives to commit them on this side of the pond. The concern I find more reasonable, having seen the role it plays in the old world, is that the mental healthcare community over here will seek to expand its opportunities to commit that kind of abuse. And why not? You seem fairly secure in your belief that none of your colleagues would actually abuse that power if you had it.