A Family’s ICU Experience Raises Questions About Restraints and Patient Safety at Joseph Brant Hospital

By: Kezia Royer-Burkett, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Burlington Local-News.ca

 

A Waterdown family is sharing a deeply personal experience from the intensive care unit (ICU) at Joseph Brant Hospital, hoping it will prompt greater awareness and dialogue around the use of physical restraints in critical care settings.

 

Lillian Griffin says her family believed they were actively advocating for her mother while she was hospitalized late last year, yet still discovered that restraints had been used overnight without their knowledge. 

 

“My sister called multiple times overnight, the nurse said, ‘She’s fine. Your mum’s fine, no issues,” Griffin recalled. “My sister went in the morning and discovered that my mum was restrained under the cover.”

 

According to Griffin, the restraints had been applied around 11:30 p.m. and remained in place until about 8:30 a.m. the next morning. When she questioned the nurse, she said she was told the decision was based on uncertainty. “She said, ‘I haven’t had her as a patient before, and I didn’t know what she was going to be like,’” Griffin said.

 

Griffin’s mother was living with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), functioning at roughly 20%  lung capacity, and had been admitted after a fall that caused a collapsed lung. Griffin explained that her mother was claustrophobic and would sometimes reach for her oxygen mask when it became uncomfortable.

 

“The reason she was being restrained is that she kept touching and shifting the oxygen mask,” she said. “Most people have no idea that your parents or your family members can just be restrained, even when you tell them [hospital staff], ’Do not restrain them.’”

 

Griffin says the family had repeatedly and explicitly told staff that they did not consent to restraints and asked to be contacted if staff felt the situation was escalating.

 

“I specifically told every nurse I encountered to document that our family did not want restraints used on my mother under any circumstances,” she said. 

 

She recalls later speaking with ICU leadership, who acknowledged that the situation should not have occurred. “We’ve spoken to the manager at the ICU who spoke to us and said that should never have happened,” Griffin said, adding that staff are required to follow several steps before restraints are used. Griffin believes inexperience may have played a role. “I think basically the nurse is very young and inexperienced, and she just thought, ‘I’m just going to restrain her, and I won’t have to deal with her all night.’”

 

Another comment shared with the family left a lasting impression. Griffin says a head nurse told them, “These people don’t remember anyway, because they’re delirious,” in reference to elderly ICU patients. “That stayed with us,” she said. “It made us feel like dignity was being minimized.”

 

After her mother’s passing, Griffin says bruising on her mother’s wrists raised further concerns. A coroner’s investigation was initiated, during which it was also discovered that her mother had received double the intended dose of an opioid. Narcan was administered twice in an attempt to reverse the overdose. The coroner advised Griffin to pursue the matter through Patient Relations.

 

Joseph Brant Hospital, in a statement provided to Burlington Local-News.ca, emphasized that restraint use is rare and governed by strict guidelines. “Consistent with best practices in other Ontario hospitals, Joseph Brant Hospital supports a philosophy of minimal use of restraint,” the hospital’s communications team stated. “Restraint is only used in exceptional circumstances when immediately necessary to prevent serious harm to the patient, to family members, to the care team, or to other patients.”

 

The hospital added that when restraints are deemed necessary, they should be used “for as short a period of time as possible,” and that staff are trained to prioritize alternatives such as de-escalation techniques, reassurance, and environmental adjustments. “Family wishes are respected and documented; however, exceptions can occur in emergency situations where there is an imminent risk of harm,” the statement noted.

 

Joseph Brant Hospital also pointed to its Patient Experience Office as a resource for families with concerns. “We are committed to transparency and upholding the highest standards of patient care and safety,” the statement said.

 

For Griffin, the goal of speaking out is not to place blame, but to ensure other families are informed. “We know it’s against policy, because we went and looked up all the policies,” she said. “We just want people to know: be careful. Even if you say you don’t want restraints, they can still restrain people, and you may have no idea.”

 

She hopes sharing her mother’s story will lead to greater awareness and change. “We can’t do anything for my mum now,” Griffin said. “But we want to raise awareness, so maybe somebody won’t be tied to the bed like my mum was. Maybe something will change.”