Preventing the Use of Restraint and Seclusion
A primary mission of the New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH) is to promote the mental health of all New Yorkers, with a particular focus on providing hope and recovery for adults with serious mental illness and children with serious emotional disturbances. OMH envisions a future in which every New Yorker experiences hope and recovery and people across New York have access to and choice among the supports and services that foster self-determination for living, working, learning and participating fully in their communities. The OMH mission and vision are founded on values that promote resilience, recovery, hope, respect, positive social and emotional development, and an environment free from fear, pain, injury or danger.
OMH leadership recognizes that restraint and seclusion are counterproductive to recovery and hope. We believe that the use of these restrictive interventions can be reduced by creating positive therapeutic environments which promote the empowerment of persons served and which emphasize the education and sensitization of staff regarding alternatives to restraint and seclusion. We have, therefore:
- Established a high threshold for the use of restraint and seclusion;
- Set high standards for the least risky implementation of restraint and seclusion; and
- Embraced the direction set by the consumer movement and the standards promulgated by the Joint Commission (TJC)
, The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) , the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) , and the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors (NASMHPD) , all of which promote a reduction in the use of restraint and seclusion in programs for people in mental health programs.
This page is designed as a resource for mental health providers interested in developing a culture of care that is person-centered, recovery-oriented, trauma-informed, and free of violence and coercion. We hope that these tools and resources will help you create and sustain such a culture, particularly in light of the OMH regulations on restraint and seclusion .
Comments or questions about the information on this page can be directed to the Division of Quality Management.