These guidelines support the safe reduction and elimination of seclusion and restraint for people subject to the Mental Health (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act 1992.
The Ministry has revised the guidance on the use of seclusion under the Mental Health (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act 1992 (the Mental Health Act). These guidelines now include a stronger emphasis on person-centred and culturally appropriate approaches to safely reduce the use of seclusion and restraint in mental health services.
The purpose of these guidelines is:
- to support the safe reduction and elimination of seclusion and restraint for people under the Mental Health Act, and
- when it has not been possible to avoid the use of seclusion and restraint, to identify best-practice methods for use in mental health inpatient units (including forensic mental health inpatient units) that align with the specifications set out in the Ngā Paerewa Health and Disability Services Standard.
These guidelines are written mainly for mental health inpatient services, clinical staff, district inspectors and any other parties who administer or work within the legal or clinical framework of the Mental Health Act. Families and whānau, service users and tāngata whai ora, and members of the public may also find these guidelines useful.
In line with the Guidelines to the Mental Health (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act 1992 and the companion document Human Rights and the Mental Health (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act 1992, these guidelines reflect the growing influence of rights-based approaches and how these can be better promoted within the parameters of the current Mental Health Act, as well as the need to give greater emphasis to our obligations under Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
While the use of seclusion in mental health services is provided for in section 71 of the Mental Health Act 1992, it is now recognised that seclusion and restraint are not therapeutic and may be harmful to tāngata whaiora and staff. Therefore, seclusion and restraint should only use it as a last resort, to prevent harm in emergency situations, when providers have tried other less restrictive strategies.