Page 30 - Reduction of coercive measures

Chapter 2
representatives gave consent (53%). Support staff members received information about the study by email and were asked to participate as well. When staff members did not confirm participation or expressed questions, further explanation was given by researchers by phone or site visit. When support staff members who did not wish to participate in the study were present during a shift that was selected to be registered and observed, the shift was registered by a colleague or the shift was coded as missing data. Support staff received an explanation by email on how they could register coercive measures with a digital list of coercive measures designed for the project. The email was sent to one support staff member per unit and they were asked to discuss it with all staff members in the care unit and to afterwards confirm that the assignment was well understood, or to request additional email or phone consult until full comprehension was reached. Whenever there was no response or support staff expressed questions, further explanation was given by phone.
To obtain a registration of coercive measures which covered care 24 hours a day, support staff was asked to register applied coercive measures per shift and per resident during a period of one month. Independent research assistants, further called independent observers, recorded coercive measures as well in 28 shifts. These shifts were randomly selected out of all shifts between 7am and 10pm during the period in which registration was performed by the support staff members. Between 10pm and 7am no support staff was at the site but need for care was monitored through surveillance technology such as devices to listen in a resident’s room or unit and the use of cameras. Whenever a resident needed support during the night a support staff member was available to visit the unit and provide support. Additional coercive measures during the night were reported. Most coercive measures that were applied at or before 10pm mostly lasted until 7am, and were registered by support staff that was present at the unit from 7am the next morning.
Also a second support staff member was asked to register coercive measures, in order to obtain registrations from two support staff members during the same shift. One support staff member from every unit at which two or more persons were present at the unit
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