Restraint ‘routine’ in some homes for troubled youths

SOME homes for troubled youngsters are too reliant on physically restraining or medicating their charges to control behaviour, a report has found.

Out of 13 high support units (HSUs) nationwide, more than half are failing to manage their charges' behaviour safely, according to a report by the Irish Social Services Inspectorate (ISSI).

Published yesterday, it found seven of the 13 HSUs 12 of which are run by the Health Service Executive were either failing to "provide the assistance the young people required to keep their behaviour within acceptable limits or they took measures to deal with unacceptable behaviour that were ineffective and/or inappropriate".