Our commitment to least restrictive practices
At Ellern Mede, our goal is to empower the people we work with, to promote their long-term wellbeing, quality of life and independence. We are known for our expertise and positive outcomes working therapeutically with individuals to de-escalate high-risk presentations and reduce the need for restrictive interventions and repeat admissions.
We aim to understand the personal needs and factors behind challenging behaviours, including self-harm, aggression and restriction or refusal behaviours. Our team are trained in specialist DBT and PBS-informed approaches, and use tools such as RAID (Reinforce appropriate, implode disruptive) plans to support individuals to build positive and effective behaviours and interpersonal skills.
Many of the people we support present with high levels of risk, which we aim to reduce through a structured trauma-informed approach. We work within a holistic therapeutic framework and risk management plans are embedded within multi-disciplinary treatment plans to support long-term recovery goals.
We recognise that admission to an inpatient unit for compulsory treatment in itself can be a distressing and restrictive intervention for patients and their families/carers. Our recovery model includes a strong emphasis on working therapeutically with patients and their families/carers (where appropriate) to process and ‘debrief’ the inpatient experience and build resilience.
Patients and families are actively involved in risk formulations and developing ‘PILRIMP’ plans (Patient involvement in least restrictive management plans) which support individuals to communicate their preferred approaches and needs in advance of any episodes of distress.
Our robust governance and patient safety processes ensure that restrictive interventions are systematically reviewed and only used when necessary, justifiable and proportionate to the level of risk.
We review our Reducing restrictive practices strategy annually with input from patients, family and staff, and thematic analysis from our monthly Reducing restrictive practice (RRP) meetings. We are committed to maintaining an open and compassionate culture that fully promotes patient’s rights and dignity.