The use of physical restraints in nursing homes: pre- and post-Nursing Home Reform Act

The purposes of this paper are: (1) to determine resident risk factors for the use of physical restraints since the implementation of the Nursing Home Reform Act (NHRA) of 1987, (2) compare these results with resident risk factors for the use of physical restraints prior to the implementation of the NHRA, and (3) to identify facility characteristics associated with the use of physical restraints. The data used are from 4,215 nursing home residents in 268 facilities who were evaluated using the Minimum Data Set (MDS) in six month periods in both 1990 and 1993. Results indicate that the NHRA may have been successful in reducing the use of physical restraints; however, it would appear to have had less impact on the types of residents who are restrained. It is also shown that the use of physical restraints is associated with facility characteristics.