Abstract
This is a slim volume containing only 17 pages, which summarises the key messages from the full guideline report. This review is limited by having had access only to the quick reference guide and not to the clinical practice guidelines. The authors clearly state their intention that the quick reference guide only be used where the guidelines have been made available to those responsible for treatment and care, including management. The booklet emphasises the need for ongoing audit and review to continue improvement in patient care.
The booklet is set out in dot point format, with each chapter including overall aims and then giving implementation points to achieve those aims. These chapters consist of: (1) good practice in the clinical environment; (2) anticipating and preventing violence; (3) medication in the context of violence; and (4) short-term prediction of violence.
The material included in these chapters provides an easily ingested, practical and commonsense approach, addressing the needs of the patient, carers and the service. In some cases, the implementation points represent an ideal, rather than the reality. For instance, it recommends well-planned reception areas, separate areas for different patients and avoidance of crowding. There is a recommendation that there be adequate staff ratios, well supervised, trained and experienced staff and a gender and ethnic mix of staff appropriate to patient population. The booklet emphasises the need for training with regard to the warning signs of violence and to methods of anticipating or de-escalating violent behaviour.
This is a booklet produced in association with the Royal College of Psychiatrists in the United Kingdom. It is directed towards legislative and service provisions in the United Kingdom. Although some of its contents relate specifically to United Kingdom requirements, such as the requirements for monitoring of seclusion, much of its content is of local relevance and the guide could usefully be appended to training and clinical practice in Australia and New Zealand.
This is a useful booklet for services providing inpatient care to those in both the acute and chronic phases of psychotic illnesses and as a ready reference for clinicians and trainees working in such environments. However, as emphasised in the booklet, this quick reference guide does not supplant the need for a more detailed set of guidelines.