Prone restraint, it's a term one won't likely hear in everyday life. But a new report has found the practice, where a person is held face down on the floor, is being used more than it should at Adelaide's Youth Detention Centre. The report's authors say it could be a breach of human rights, but the government says its only used as last resort.
00:00There'll be staff coming from everywhere, ready to jump on you.
00:05Staff just kept on going. They kept on pushing my head into the ground.
00:08The other workers from the units would be standing around having a chat and laughing while you're there laying on the floor.
00:14This is how children have described being forced onto the floor, face down, at the youth detention centre in Adelaide.
00:21It's a technique known as a prone restraint, and it was used by facility staff 114 times in the 2023-24 financial year.
00:30There are now calls for it to be banned.
00:32Internationally, this is recognised as a very risky form of restraint.
00:36It can lead to restraint, asphyxia, and potentially even death.
00:41These restraints are actually banned in child mental health facilities across Australia, yet we're still using it in a youth detention centre.
00:47Shona Reid and the chief psychiatrist inspected the youth detention centre earlier this year.
00:53Their report, tabled in Parliament this week, has found physical force and restraint are routinely used.
00:58In one instance, a detainee was placed in a 15-minute prone restraint.
01:03I'm urging the government to think about how they can do this in a safer and more dignified manner for our children.
01:10The government says prone restraint is rare and used as a last resort.
01:14Anything used is done with the safety of the young person at the centre of that.
01:20Both the chief psychiatrist and the guardian for children say staff at the centre are doing the best they can under very difficult circumstances.
01:28They say staffing shortages are making the facility more reliant on the use of physical force rather than de-escalation.
01:35But the minister says the workforce has increased by about 47%.
01:39To couch a comment and frame it in a way that says that there are things being done because of staffing limitations in general, I would refute that.
01:50The government says it's already rolling out changes, but wouldn't say when it will respond to the recommendations.
Be the first to comment