Use of Physical Restraint by RN on Resident
Penalty
Summary
A deficiency occurred when a Registered Nurse (RN) used physical restraint on a resident by holding the resident's arms and hands down to limit voluntary movement. The incident took place after the resident attempted to leave the facility, banged on a door, and threw a cup of coffee at the RN. Multiple staff statements and interviews confirmed that the RN held the resident's arms down from behind the wheelchair, and at one point, placed her arms around the resident's upper chest while wheeling the resident away from the door. The RN and the resident were engaged in a verbal altercation, and the RN was observed to be frustrated during the incident. The facility's policy, revised in March 2025, defines physical restraints as any manual method or device that restricts freedom of movement and cannot be easily removed by the individual. The RN's actions were documented in a Performance Correction Notice and corroborated by written statements and interviews from Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs) who witnessed the event. The resident was actively resisting and attempting to hit staff, leading the RN to physically restrain the resident, which was not in accordance with the facility's restraint policy.