Don’t miss the first session of our 2026 Expert Perspectives Series: Capacity Assessment – A Practical Approach from a Geriatric Psychiatry Perspective with Dr. Michael Cooper, Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry, UBC.
Topic: Capacity Assessment – A Practical Approach From a Geriatric Psychiatry Perspective
When: Thursday, May 28, 2026, from 12-1PM PT
Where: Teams - Please register below for the link
Capacity assessments can quickly become complex - especially when psychiatric, cognitive, and family dynamics intersect. In this practical and engaging session, Dr. Michael Cooper shares real-world insights from a geriatric psychiatry perspective to help you approach these cases with greater clarity and confidence.
You’ll gain a deeper understanding of how to identify risks early, collaborate effectively with specialists, and navigate the nuances that can make or break an assessment. Whether you’re coordinating care, managing claims, or preparing for medico-legal processes, this session will equip you with strategies you can apply immediately.
• A clear framework for selecting the right medical expert for complex capacity cases
• The ability to spot early warning signs that signal a case may become high-risk or contentious
• Practical tools to recognize and respond to delirium and other often-missed conditions
• Insight into how personality disorders and family dynamics can derail assessments - and how to manage them
• A stronger understanding of how common psychiatric conditions in older adults impact capacity determinations
• Proven strategies for communicating effectively with geriatric psychiatrists from the outset
• Guidance on navigating consent, rapport-building, and other critical moments in the assessment process
• Tips for gathering and leveraging collateral information to support a thorough, defensible opinion
• A behind-the-scenes look at how assessments come together - right through to the final medico-legal report
Dr. Michael Cooper completed his MD and psychiatry training at UBC, and then subspecialty qualification in geriatric psychiatry. Dr. Cooper practiced in the South Okanagan for 17 years establishing Elderly Outreach Programs throughout the Southern Interior.
He worked closely with mental health programs involved in responding to elder abuse assessments including being the designated signing authority for Office of Public Trustee capacity assessments.
Dr. Cooper continued in this role after moving to Victoria to be Division Head for Geriatric Psychiatry for Vancouver Island. This also included developing a clinical trial research program for testing new treatments for Alzheimer Disease.
In 2012, he shifted focus to developing the Postgraduate Psychiatry training program for Victoria until 2016, including training psychiatry and family practice residents in cognitive and capacity assessments.
Dr. Cooper’s experience includes an appointment to the B.C. Review Board under the Criminal Code dealing with NCRMD cases at the Forensic Psychiatry Institute. He was also appointed to the B.C. Health Care Consent Review Board in 2000-2003.
Dr. Cooper has done hundreds of IME and Capacity Assessments with an interest in complex and challenging cases.