Restrictive Practice Guide

Summary

Restrictive interventions are deliberate acts on the part of other person(s) that restrict a patient’s movement, liberty and/or freedom to act independently in order to:

'Take immediate control of a dangerous situation where there is a real possibility of harm to the person or others if no action is undertaken, and end or reduce significantly the danger to the patient or others.'

This guide, from the Advancing Quality Alliance (AQuA) has been developed to provide a brief overview of restrictive practice and the legislation that underpins it and outline ways to reduce its use during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.