title: A Conceptual Model for Nurses' Decision-making with the Aggressive Psychiatric Patient.
abstract: Violence in the acute care psychiatric setting is an ongoing serious problem. Maintenance of a safe therapeutic environment is a paramount responsibility of nurses practicing in this area. Ethical and legal standards demand that the nurse intervenes in aggressive situations in a manner that employs the least intrusive and restrictive measures necessary to provide safety. Therefore, accurate and effective decision-making in aggressive situations, which can escalate rapidly, is of great importance. This paper discusses a theoretical model for decision-making in selecting interventions with aggressive psychiatric patients. This model may provide a basis for the development of training and education programs for effective decision-making in this area.
authors.affiliation: a Molloy College, Nursing, Rockville Centre , New York , USA.
authors.forename: Lois Biggin
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Moylan
mesh_terms: D000374:Aggression; D000066491:Clinical Decision-Making; D006801:Humans; D016294:Models, Nursing