Physical restraint use in children with mental and behavioral health emergencies in the prehospital setting.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Emergency medical services (EMS) transport for mental and behavioral health (MBH) emergencies occurs frequently in children, yet little is understood regarding prehospital physical restraint use despite the potential for serious adverse events. We aim to describe restraint use prevalence and primary impressions among children with MBH emergencies.

Methods

This is a retrospective cross-sectional study of children with MBH emergencies evaluated by Alameda County (ALCO), California EMS from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2018. Patient demographics and clinical variables were collected from the EMS records including sex, age at time of encounter, year of encounter, transport destination, medication use, and primary impression(s). The primary outcome was the use of phy

SUBMITTER: Foster AA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10432898 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature