NRS449.779. Mechanical restraint: Permissible use; report of use in emergency.

      1.  Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, mechanical restraint may be used on a person with a disability who is a patient at a facility only if:

      (a) An emergency exists that necessitates the use of mechanical restraint;

      (b) A medical order authorizing the use of mechanical restraint is obtained from the patient’s treating physician before the application of the mechanical restraint or not later than 15 minutes after the application of the mechanical restraint;

      (c) The physician who signed the order required pursuant to paragraph (b) or the attending physician examines the patient not later than 1 working day immediately after the application of the mechanical restraint;

      (d) The mechanical restraint is applied by a member of the staff of the facility who is trained and qualified to apply mechanical restraint;

      (e) The patient is given the opportunity to move and exercise the parts of his or her body that are restrained at least 10 minutes per every 60 minutes of restraint;

      (f) A member of the staff of the facility lessens or discontinues the restraint every 15 minutes to determine whether the patient will stop or control his or her inappropriate behavior without the use of the restraint;

      (g) The record of the patient contains a notation that includes the time of day that the restraint was lessened or discontinued pursuant to paragraph (f), the response of the patient and the response of the member of the staff of the facility who applied the mechanical restraint;

      (h) A member of the staff of the facility continuously monitors the patient during the time that mechanical restraint is used on the patient; and

      (i) The patient is released from the mechanical restraint as soon as the behavior of the patient no longer presents an immediate threat to himself or herself or others.

      2.  Mechanical restraint may be used on a person with a disability who is a patient at a facility and the provisions of subsection 1 do not apply if the mechanical restraint is used to:

      (a) Treat the medical needs of a patient;

      (b) Protect a patient who is known to be at risk of injury to himself or herself because the patient lacks coordination or suffers from frequent loss of consciousness;

      (c) Provide proper body alignment to a patient; or

      (d) Position a patient who has physical disabilities in a manner prescribed in the patient’s plan of treatment.

      3.  If mechanical restraint is used on a person with a disability who is a patient at a facility in an emergency, the use of the procedure must be reported as a denial of rights pursuant to NRS 449.786, regardless of whether the use of the procedure is authorized by statute. The report must be made not later than 1 working day after the procedure is used.

      (Added to NRS by 1999, 3249)