ABSTRACT
The use of physical measures to contain or control behaviour is always a contentious issue and one that often creates confusion, anxiety and disharmony amongst care staff. Physical restraint of any kind is often both dangerous and distressing for all parties, and must only be used either as an emergency measure to deal with a one-off situation, or within a carefully agreed and strictly monitored individual programme plan.1 However, much physical intervention is used within social care, which may not constitute physical restraint and which may, in certain circumstances, be deemed good practice – a supportive arm around a distressed person may be an example. There is a lot of confusion about the issue of what staff are permitted to do. I have known some staff who had convinced themselves that any form of touching was prohibited, even that involved in defending themselves from an attack.
