Perceptions regarding the use of physical restraints with elderly persons: comparison of Israeli health care nurses and social workers

Abstract

In view of the difficulty involved in decision-making regarding the use or removal of physical restraints and the recent pattern encouraging the use of interdisciplinary teams for elder care issues, the present study compared the perceptions of Israeli nurses and social workers in health care settings regarding the use of physical restraints. Data were collected from a convenience sample of 50 nurses and 69 social workers working in long-term and acute care settings. The findings indicated that participants in all professions attributed moderate to low importance towards the use of physical restraints. Social workers' perceptions were similar to those of nurses in psychiatric hospitals and slightly more favourable to the use of physical restraints than those of nurses in nursing homes. Patients' safety (as reflected in the scores of the items related to protecting an older person from falling and protecting an older person from pulling out a catheter) was the most important reason for using physical restraints for both groups. Increased attention should be given to the role of social workers as team members in the process of decision-making regarding the use or removal of physical restraints, especially as mediators between the elderly person, family members and staff members.