Holding children and young people: defining skills for good practice

Physical holds are used to help children and young people receive clinical care in situations where their behaviour may limit the ability of nurses and allied professionals to deliver treatment effectively. This article provides an overview of a qualitative study of 11 nurses and allied professionals who were interviewed with semi-structured questions. The major findings suggest there is a lack of clear and agreed terminology and nurses and allied professionals are guessing at how to describe the practice. As a result, there was no discussion or documentation of the practices of holding (whether successful or unsuccessful) within the clinical area. For the last decade, professional opinion was that this is an 'uncontested practice'. It can therefore be questioned whether this practice has moved from being 'uncontested' to 'indifferent'. Nurses and allied professionals need to revive a common definition of 'good' around the actions of holding, which can hopefully lead to holding skills being more clearly defined and evidence-based.