In bulletin 12, we talked about rules providers must follow about chemical restraint.

Chemical restraint is when medicine is used to change how a person behaves.

In this bulletin, we explain these rules more clearly.

When a chemical restraint is used, it must be included in a person’s behaviour support plan.

This includes when a person takes medicine for chemical restraint while a provider is giving them support.

For example, the person might:

• take the medicine by themselves while the provider is giving them support

• get support from the provider to take the medicine.

The behaviour support plan then needs to be checked by a Quality Assurance Panel.

Providers must also know how to support someone who is affected by a chemical restraint.

For example, they must make sure the person who is affected by a chemical restraint is safe.