There are "understandable but harmless mistakes," there's "whether or not it's right depends on who you're talking to," and then there's "just plain wrong." Guess what heading this falls under.
A North Carolina man was restrained face-down on his bed for over an hour this week because he resisted blood tests.
The unnamed man, who is 24 years old and a patient in the Central Regional Hospital in Butner, North Carolina, was tied to his bed and left alone for an hour on Wednesday morning. Local disability rights groups have decried this treatment, stating that it is not only cruel but potentially deadly. Vicki Smith, head of a North Carolina group called Disability Rights, stated that "of all the restraint practices, [face-down restraint is] the most risky because patients are at immediate risk of positional asphyxiation," and argues that "restraint is only appropriate when the person is a danger to themselves."
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services does not deny the claim, instead stating they will investigate the incident and then determine what to do. They allege that whatever happened was an isolated incident and they will take steps to prevent similar situations in the future.
Many disability advocates, however, argue that this is not the case, pointing to many previous "isolated incidents" in the state such as the case of Steven Sabock, who was left sitting in a chair for 22 hours in April and died while the nurses played cards. The videotape of his death was just released last week. There have been numerous allegations lately of abuse in the North Carolina mental health system, and disability advocates believe it is a sign of systematic abuse within the system rather than a series of isolated incidents.
Cherry Hospital, the site where Sabock died, has lost its federal certification and funding. Investigations, both governmental and privately run, are ongoing in the restraint case.
Related: Multiply Disabled Woman Allegedly Raped and Impregnated by Caregiver, Teacher Accused of Tying Autistic Kids to Chairs
Photo credit: The Facey Family on Flickr
