“Staff are seeing benefits, as are patients. Staff have fed back that they feel better prepared to manage deceleration and de-escalation and don’t rely on holding skills. Staff also report that, in many years of working, they are really impressed how much they learned from a 5-day programme and realised they should question their own practise more.”
Sarah Ward-Greef, Professional Trainer, St Andrew’s Healthcare
Launched in January 2016, St Andrew’s Healthcare’s
MAPA® (Management of Actual and Potential Aggression) programme has now seen more than 1,800 clinical practitioners complete the course.
St Andrew’s is the UK’s leading mental health care charity, providing specialist care for patients with some of the most complex and challenging mental health needs. They develop innovative ways to help patients recover, creating a package of care designed around each individual’s preferences and needs that focus on physical and spiritual well-being as well as their mental health.
Utilising the communication, deceleration and de-escalation techniques of MAPA
® – with holding skills being used only as a last resort – St Andrew's has delivered some compelling results, with a 32% reduction in the number of restraints per month. This shows that least restrictive practice is particularly effective for their patients and demonstrates how MAPA
® supports their commitment to continuous improvement.
Recent CQC feedback highlighted the use of de-escalation as a first line in supporting patients and how this would often help reduce patient anxiety and behavioural disturbance. As a result, patients spoke positively about staff and felt safe on the ward. MAPA
® has helped develop a good rapport between staff and patients and has encouraged positive staff and patient interaction and individual support.