A story out of Great Britain has people wondering about a frail man with Alzheimer’s Disease who was handcuffed in an ambulance to prevent him from fleeing.
The man’s family say officials used excessive force after their father slipped out of straps to restrain him while in an ambulance. A BBC News report does not explain why the ambulance was called to assist the man. But another from the Daily Mail does. In-home caregivers decided to call for assistance to the hospital a day ahead of a scheduled trip with the man’s daughter. The man became agitated, and ambulance workers asked the police to assist in restraining him so he didn’t harm himself, workers or people along the roadside while in transit. Police decided for everyone’s safety to handcuff the man. He later died of an unrelated fall at the hospital that touched off an inquery. Though the death was ruled accidentally, his daughter believes the stress of the handcuffs contributed.
Police have apologized, but note that given the man’s behavior, they had little choice but to restrain him to keep him from fleeing the vehicle or harming others in his agitated state. They also acknowledged they may need more training in dealing with “mental health” patients.
What do you think – were the handcuffs inappropriate? Or, given conventional restraints failed to work or could have caused more harm, were the handcuffs necessary for the man’s own protection?