Effectiveness of occupational therapy for reducing restraint use in a psychiatric setting

Patients who received occupational therapy services (OT Group) and those who did not (NOT Group) were compared in a retrospective record review to determine the efficacy of occupational therapy in reducing the need for restraint in a state psychiatric hospital. There were 60 subjects with an Axis I diagnosis in each group who met the qualifications of a continuous 90-day minimum inpatient status during 1990. The amount of time each subject spent in restraint, seclusion, or restraint and seclusion, and free from confinement served as the dependent variables. Results showed no differences between the OT Group and the NOT Group for time spent in confinement. A major limitation in this study was the lack of specificity in the documentation of occupational therapy services.