I worked as a Psychiatric Nurse and an Emergency Nurse for 10 years. When I left I had never been hit other then by the elderly with Alzheimer’s or dementia. (This had to do with the high level of care they required). We used non-painful wrist locks. Applying no pressure on joints or using pressure points. Applying pain doesn’t make people who are irrational more rational. Also my job wasn’t for punishment regardless of behaviour. To be honest the quickest way to deescalate was build a rapport. We were trained in everything from assessing rooms, opening doors, recognising precursors to aggression. We practised our body language to be defensive yet not in an aggressive stance.
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