Mental Health in Colorado

Denver, CO. - JULY 09: Medical Director Kim Nordstrom, right, waits as RN Eileen Hodges prepares an injection for a patient that needed to be restrained in psychiatric emergency services department at Denver Health Medical Center in Denver, CO July 09, 2014. Nordstrom said, "I'm going to medicate him because I want to get him out of the restraints quickly." Nordstrom work with patients in a voluntary manner as much as possible, "this isnt jail." She said, "we try and reassure them, talk about the options and get informed consent. Obviously, if theyre so agitated that they want to hurt themselves or hurt others we then have to do things on an involuntary basis. Thats where things like restraints are used. We dont use them a lot because we try to act in prevention." (Photo By Craig F. Walker / The Denver Post)