"hard" restraints?

Specialties Psychiatric

Published

Hi everyone! Quick question...I thought the posey "twice as tough" locking restraints (you know, the ones that are blue for upper extremities and red for lower and have a silver lock-link to posey's website with picture below) were considered hard restraints...am I right? Another seasoned RN called them soft restraints...I thought only the cloth restraints were "soft"... thanks for any insight!

http://www.posey.com/Products/Posey-Locking-Twice-as-Toughandtrade--Cuffs__2792.aspx

Specializes in Peds, Neuro Surg, Trauma, Psych.

Those are what we use for mechanical restraints where I work. Since she's old school she may be thinking of leathers as hard restraints. My understanding is that hard restraints lock with a key and used for behavioral control like the ones you sighted and soft are secured with a slip knot and used for medical purposes (pulling tubes and lines).

Specializes in Leadership, Psych, HomeCare, Amb. Care.

Soft are the Velcro and cloth, usually no locks, and used on medical floors.

medium are the blue and red locking ones described

hard is the old FLR that where the norm when I first became a nurse.

Weve removed Hard from our MD order and flow sheet. We use the blue and red ones as med restraints, the only option for our psych unit.

Specializes in Psych ICU, addictions.

I come across the Velcro version (blue/red with locks) more than I do the leather ones.

However, none of the facilities that I've worked/work at have ever differentiated between "hard" and "soft" restraints: 4 points were/are 4 points no matter the material used. I've never used a restraint that didn't have a lock...then again, I don't work medical or gero-psych.

Those are considered "hard" restraints. "Leathers" have been done away with for sanitation/infection control purposes (no real way to clean them) and the neoprene locking restraints illustrated in the link you posted are what has replaced them. Some places used to differentiate between "hard" (leathers) and "soft" restraints (soft fabric and Velcro, Posey vest restraints), but everywhere I've worked over the years (decades), that has just been code for "locking" and "without locks." Really, though, as already noted, there's no meaningful difference between "hard" and "soft" restraints any more; a restraint is a restraint, and the only significant distinction is whether they are being used for medical or behavioral reasons.

Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

I haven't seen leathers in a while.

Those are pictured "hard" restraints.

I agree with Merriwhen...if a patient is in 4 points they are in 4 points. No difference in charting requirements.

Specializes in Psych.
I haven't seen leathers in a while.

Those are pictured "hard" restraints.

I agree with Merriwhen...if a patient is in 4 points they are in 4 points. No difference in charting requirements.

The main difference I have seen at work is that the when a patient is in soft restraints on the medical side ( we dont do soft) they do not require a 1:1 sitter, when we have someone in hard restraints we require a 1:1 sitter.

we use the posey ones in the op as 4 point restraints those are they only type of 4 point restraints we have we use to use those as soft restraints and leathers as hard restraints however we stopped using the leathers a few months ago although they are still in the nurses station for some reason.

I work for the VA and the only restraints we use on our unit are leather cuff and belts with require a key to release. It is my understanding that "soft" restraints are the cloth type used for medical reasons, ex. patient attempting to remove IV related to delirium. The VA is pretty "old fashioned" so I think we will be using leathers for a while.

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