Involuntary hospital admissions in psychiatric practice bring up many ethical dilemmas. Any process that restricts the autonomy of a person needs to be carefully thought about. Involving the people and getting their perception of the entire proceeding is a step in the right direction. Professor Stefan Priebe and his team have conducted the largest prospective study to date to find out how patients view involuntary hospital admission. Here, Dr Saliha Nazir talks to Professor Priebe about the study design, the findings and the outcomes from this study.