I'm sorry, you've made the wrong decision.
Here are some points that you need to consider. You should have included all of these in your reflective activity.
- Grabbing Ryan’s arm and putting it behind his back to restrain him is not the right thing to do. Your organisation has guidelines on the legal use of restraint. Restraint is usually only permitted in extreme circumstances and as a last resort. Even when it is permitted, restraint should only use the mimimum force and time to ensure the safety of everyone involved. Your actions are likely to make Ryan more distressed.
- While you intended to prevent Ryan harming himself, he possibly interpreted your move towards him as threatening. The right thing to do in this situation would have been to step back and call for assistance.
- Your role places you in a position of power. By inappropriately using restraint you are abusing this power. Unless you only use the techniques that you have been trained to do, these methods do not work and may only make situations worse. You have not acted in the best interests of Ryan, the other young people in the care setting, or your colleagues.
- Your actions could call into question your suitability to be a social service worker. An investigation by your employer could result in disciplinary action and you could lose your eligibility to remain registered with the SSSC.
- Doing nothing when Ryan’s potentially harmful behaviour started was not the right thing to do. It allowed the situation to get worse. You need to learn and follow your organisation’s policies and procedures on dealing with situations like this. These are designed to keep you and other people safe at work.
- It is your role to intervene in an appropriate and timely manner to support a young person to end an instance of unwanted behaviour, maintaining their dignity and rights while you do this. You have not done this.
- Any intervention should be consistent with behaviour support plans, agreed ways of working and legal and work setting requirements. You should work in a person-centred/child-centred way. This involves knowing and respecting each young person as an individual. You need to learn more about these ways of working.
- You could benefit from applying theories underpinning the understanding of child development and factors that affect it. Ask your employer about training opportunities.
- As this incident happened on Ryan’s return from his parents it could indicate something at home has upset him. When Ryan’s behaviour first became a concern, it was an opportunity to use active listening and to show him that you want to understand him. It was important to act quickly before his behaviour escalated
- You are not demonstrating or promoting positive behaviour with your actions. It is essential to show young people, their families and your colleagues you are trustworthy and reliable. Your actions suggest the people you work with may find it difficult to trust you in future.
When Ryan first displayed behaviour that could be harmful, the right thing to do would have been to calmly ask him to go somewhere quiet to discuss what had upset him, making sure you had a safe route of escape if required. Find out why this was the right thing to do here.
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