Court overturns FDA ban on shock device for ASD Students

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blazingstar
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Joined: 19 Nov 2017
Age: 70
Gender: Female
Posts: 6,234

07 Dec 2021, 5:49 am

I work in the general field of developmental disabilities including people with severe and dangerous behaviors.

Dangerous aggression and self-injurious behaviors comprise a relatively small number of the “population” of DD.

What is occurring at this institution is torture. People are being shocked for minor transgressions. Not taking off your coat? That is not about wearing apparel; that’s about control and you do what I say or else.

Likewise with the sedatives in nursing homes. I watched as a man was rough-handled and injected with Haldol because he had snuck a cigarette and was smoking it on an outside patio. This was not about health. This was about control.

Some people believe in solving problems with children, DD, nursing home residents, by using force and control. Some people believe that it is a God-given right to manage the lives of vulnerable people. These people believe in using punishment and control as therapy. Routinely. On a daily basis. Not just to control a dangerous behavior.

It is possible, and I have seen it done, to de-escalate rising behaviors using only words. There are people who are very skilled at this. I have also seen physical restraint done expertly and with no harm to the individual nor staff. There are procedures in which staff must be certified to protect individuals and staff when an individual is aggressive or acting in dangerous ways. It takes training and certification to learn and practice these skills.

This use of shocking to control children and vulnerable adults is inhumane.


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