Impact of a restraint training module on paramedic students' likelihood to use restraint techniques

The purpose of this study was to evaluate a restraint training module for paramedic students. The hypotheses were that the effect of an hour-long restraint training module on paramedic students would (1) improve their understanding of concepts about patient restraints and (2) change their likelihood to use restraint techniques on patients in emergency situations.

This was a cross-sectional study. A five-person panel of highly experienced emergency medical services (EMS) personnel compiled an hour-long restraint training module based on a compiled list of important concepts. A pretest and posttest were designed to contain the following two parts: (1) a knowledge quiz consisting of ten content-based questions and (2) a questionnaire on the likelihood to use restraint techniques in emergency situations, consisting of a five-question validated scale (Video Assessment of Propensity to use Emergency Restraints Scale [VAPERS]).

Thirty-four paramedic students at our training institution participated. We found that the paramedic students had a significant increase in their knowledge of the content shown (66% vs. 85%, p<0.05). There was no significant overall difference between pretest scores on the VAPERS (56+/-17 on a 0-100 scale) and posttest scores (57+/-16 on a 0-100 scale).

Paramedic students had improved understanding of important restraint concepts following a training module. The training module did not significantly change overall likelihood to use restraint techniques.