Reducing the Use of Physical Restraints: The Effect of Federal Legislation

Over the last 35 years, utilization of physical
restraints to manage
aggressive, out-of-control children & youth in mental
health
facilities has been increasingly scrutinized. In July
of 2001 the
United States federal government imposed strict new
regulations
following the investigation of a number of
restraint-related deaths.
The present study examined restraint usage at an
all-male
residential treatment facility for equal periods both
before and after
this law change. Results showed that restraint use
was cut in half
following the introduction of the new regulations. It
is believed that
many of the confounds that result from the inappropriate
application of restraints were also reduced or
eliminated, thus
inviting a fresh analysis of restraint variables. A
significant
percentage of restrained subjects were found to have
diagnosed
learning disabilities in addition to primary
diagnoses such as
Oppositional Defiant Disorder & Conduct Disorder.
Subjects who
were restrained with a high frequency required
significantly more
time in treatment than infrequently restrained or
non-restrained
subjects.