Restraining potentially violent patients

People who are emotionally distraught or mentally ill are rarely predictable. A calm, reassuring, but firm and decisive manner is most effective in dealing with out-of-control patients. Staff members should be careful to never position themselves with a potentially violent or distraught patient between them and the door. A room should be emptied of all extraneous, potentially dangerous objects before restraint of a patient. A clear plan of what is to be done and who is to do what is necessary. All staff members should remove glasses, pens, scissors, and other items that are potential weapons before restraining a patient. A humane attitude when restraining patients is extremely important. Sometimes the attitude of those applying restraints can be more traumatic than the actual application of the restraints. It is important that staff members remember that patients who need restraint are not "bad" people. For whatever reason, they have lost the ability to control themselves. These people do not like being out of control; given a choice, they would choose not to be. The staff attitude during this stressful event, which is becoming all too common in the emergency department, can have a tremendous effect on patients who require this procedure. When a patient is restrained in a competent, humane manner, staff members can pride themselves on their skills in dealing successfully with this emergency, just as they can when dealing with a cardiac arrest. Finally, it has been said that you cannot truly understand what another person is going through until you have had the same experience yourself.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)