Purpose. To understand nursing practice in seclusion and mechanical restraint events in psychiatric inpatient care.

Design and Methods. Non-participant video observation was used to collect data from seclusion and mechanical restraint events. Nursing interventions were analysed using deductive content analysis.

Findings. Video recordings (n = 36) showed that nurses were present for 4.1% of the duration of seclusion and mechanical restraint events. The nursing interventions focused on meeting patients’ basic needs, maintaining safety, and interaction.

Practice Implications. Nursing must be founded on a thorough assessment of patients’ physical and psychosocial needs and meeting those needs with appropriate nursing interventions.