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The attributes of successful de‐escalation and restraint teams
Author(s) -
Snorrason Jón,
Biering Páll
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
international journal of mental health nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.911
H-Index - 54
eISSN - 1447-0349
pISSN - 1445-8330
DOI - 10.1111/inm.12493
Subject(s) - teamwork , aggression , competence (human resources) , psychology , psychological safety , flexibility (engineering) , set (abstract data type) , team effectiveness , applied psychology , nursing , medicine , psychiatry , social psychology , knowledge management , statistics , mathematics , political science , computer science , law , programming language
Inpatient violence is a widespread problem on psychiatric wards often with serious consequences, and psychiatric hospitals have set up teams to de‐escalate and restrain patients with aggression (D‐E&R teams) which are specially trained to respond to it in a safe manner. Successful de‐escalation and restraining of patients with aggression depend not only on the methods learned in training but also on the confidence of the team. Therefore, it is of great importance to understand the factors that enhance D‐E&R teams’ competence in managing patients with aggression in a successful and safe manner. The aim of this hermeneutic study was to identify and understand those factors. Purposive‐expert sampling was used and twelve D‐E&R team members with significant experience participated in the study. The central theme found was a safe team . Ensuring the safety of the team and its members was found to be a prerequisite for successful teamwork in managing patients with aggression in a safe manner. This central theme falls into two interacting domains: the internal dynamics of the team and the team's interaction with patients . Several themes, such as mutual trust, f lexibility, and knowing one's role, influence these domains and hence strengthen or weaken the confidence and safety of the team. The findings of the study will contribute to a better understanding of these factors; understanding which could be used to improve the training, supervision, and quality assessment of D‐E&R teams and hence lead to more safety in psychiatric wards.