Understand restrictive practices
Restrictive practices limit or stop a person from using harmful behaviours, but also limit their human rights. Learn about the types of restrictive practices.
Restrictive practices use restraints to stop a person using a behaviour of concern. This is a behaviour that hurts them or someone else.
Using the following restrictive practices is regulated by the ACT Senior Practitioner.
If you're unsure about the use of a restrictive practice, contact the Office of the Senior Practitioner.
Chemical restraint
A chemical restraint is medication given to a person to manage a behaviour of concern.
It is not a chemical restraint if a doctor prescribes it to:
- treat a mental or physical illness or condition
- to diagnose an illness – for example, using a sedative to allow a blood test.
Read more about chemical restraint [PDF 183 kB].
If a person takes a medication to support their behaviour
Ask the prescriber to complete a medication purpose form [PDF 430 kB].
This form will help you identify what might be a chemical restraint.
If a person takes medication to stop their period
Stopping a period with medication (called menstrual suppression) can be a chemical restraint if it is used to manage behaviours of concern.
For information about supporting women with disability to manage their periods, read:
Environmental restraint
An environmental restraint is any action or thing that stops or limits someone from:
- accessing things or areas in their environment
- doing an activity.
For example, if you lock a person’s door so they can’t get out.
Environmental restraint does not include reasonable actions to protect a child from harm. For example:
- holding a child’s hand while crossing a road
- fencing around a primary school.
Learn more about environmental restraint [PDF 173 kB].
Mechanical restraint
A mechanical restraint is something used to control someone’s movement. It could control all or part of someone’s body. For example, if you power down someone’s wheelchair so they can’t go where they want to go.
It is not a mechanical restraint if you use it:
- to keep the person safe when travelling, such as a harness to keep a seatbelt on
- for healing, such as a cast to stop a child with a broken arm moving it to help it heal.
Learn more about mechanical restraint [PDF 173 kB].
Physical restraint
Physical restraint is using physical force to stop, slow or limit someone’s movement or part of their body to influence their behaviour. For example, holding a person’s hand down to prevent them from hitting their face.
It is not a physical restraint if it is a reflex action you make when there is an immediate risk of harm. For example:
- using reasonable force to guide or direct a person to keep them safe
- pulling a person’s hand away from a hot plate to stop them burning themselves.
Learn more about physical restraint [PDF 188 kB].
Seclusion
Keeping a person in a room or other space (day or night) and:
- stopping them leave
- not helping them leave
- making them believe they are not allowed to leave.
For example, if you leave someone alone in a room and don’t let them leave so that they don’t hurt other people.
It is not seclusion if a person chooses to take time out in a space away from others.
Learn more about seclusion [PDF 212 kB].
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