Working with Children in Crisis on a Behavioral Health Unit: Need for an Age-Appropriate Restraint Debriefing Policy

Abstract

Young mental/ behavior health patients have a higher risk of restraints among other age groups, especially with the reoccurrences of multiple restraints. The patient debriefing form made to help decrease those reoccurrences has not been updated since 2006 and is primarily made for adults. This creates a need to develop a debriefing form that is aimed to assist the age group of 5-11 years old or others that have developmental delay.