Shania Shayal Prasad 
Aggressive patients remain a reality at the St Giles Hospital, but officials say modern methods now focus on safety, de-escalation and protection, not punishment.
St Giles Hospital Acting Medical Superintendent, Dr Sheetal Singh, says psychiatry has long moved away from the harsh mechanical restraints used centuries ago.
Dr Singh adds that doctors and nurses have sustained injuries over the years, including fractures, and past violent incidents have caused damage to hospital property.
“We have been injured in previous years. The outpatient department was burnt, and you may have heard about the punches. One of the doctors was injured as well. A couple of our nurses, not a couple, many of our nurses have sustained fractures as well.”
Dr Singh adds that patients are given a fast-acting tranquilizer containing an antipsychotic medication to safely sedate and stabilize them.
“We normally take help from the family members who are accompanying. And mostly these aggressive patients come with 6 or 7 boys in the community. We get their help, and we try to calm them down. If not, then we’ll take them to a room that is inside the ward, and we’ll give them one injection.”
Dr Singh says, despite this, any defensive training being introduced is strictly for protection, not to harm patients.
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