DO WE USE RESTRAINTS TOO OFTEN - INDICATION, FREQUENCY AND CONDITIONSOF RESTRAINTS ON A GENERAL PSYCHIATRIC UNIT

A 10-month prospective study of 148 restraints on the acute psychiatri c wards of a general hospital aimed to describe the institutional cont ext of restraints. Nursing and medical staff were inquired according t o a standardised procedure about ward atmosphere, staffing, medication and other factors. 81% of restraints lasted up to 2 hours, danger of harm to others was found the principal indication criterion (70%), 41% restraints occured during the first 3 days after admission, mainly wi thin the late shift of nursing staff and outside the regular office ho urs of the doctors. Ward atmosphere was rated rather relaxed, whereas nursing staff twice as often as doctors rated medication as insufficie nt. Implications for indication on the use of restraints and for futur e research are discussed.