Restraint Reduction Network
The Restraint Reduction Network has a range of Expert Advisors who are appointed to provide advice and support in specialist areas of restraint reduction.
Dr Kevin Huckshorn (international)
Kevin A Huckshorn, PhD, MSN, RN, ICRC, is the Director of Evidence-based Practices and Programs for WellPath Recovery Solutions, Inc. She recently ended her tenure as the hospital director for Bridgewater State Hospital in MA where she and her team transitioned a prison for adult men with serious mental illnesses to a state hospital directed by trauma-informed care and recovery-based practices, under the direction of Governor Baker, MA DOC and WellPath.
Dr. Huckshorn was the past State Director of Delaware’s Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health (2009-2015). She also served as the acting Delaware Psychiatric Center Director from April 2009 to September 2011 and led the successful resolution of the USDOJ Olmstead settlement agreement with the state.
Dr Huckshorn is a licensed and certified mental health nurse and substance abuse clinician with practical knowledge from 38 years of professional frontline experience working in a variety of public and private mental health organisations and substance abuse programs. She has extensive experience in both inpatient and outpatient program development including peer-run projects; psychiatric rehabilitation treatment programs for persons with serious mental illness; and recovery-based mental health and substance abuse services.
She has published on topics including violence, treatment adherence, and workforce development; serves on the editorial boards of two U.S. peer reviewed mental health journals; and co-authored a book with William Anthony, PhD titled “Principled Leadership in Mental Health Systems and Programs” (2008). Dr. Huckshorn was the past Director of the Office of Technical Assistance for the National Association for State Mental Health Program Directors (NASMHPD) and the National Coordinating Center for Seclusion and Restraint Reduction where she led the development of an evidence-based model to prevent violence and the use of seclusion and restraint (2001-2018). This EBP has been adopted in over 35 states and six countries to date.
Dr Jennifer Kilcoyne
Dr Jennifer Kilcoyne is the Clinical Director and Deputy Chief Clinical Information Officer for Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust.
As Clinical Director for the Centre for Perfect Care, Jennifer is responsible for providing clinical leadership to services across the Trust to enable them to deliver ambitious quality improvement priorities. As Deputy Chief Clinical Information Officer for a Global Digital Exemplar she has worked to ensure the clinical and inclusion agenda are central to the digital strategy and innovative technology is applied to offer solutions to key mental health challenges.
Jennifer is also a Consultant for the World Health Organisation, delivering training and implementing service improvement in countries across Europe to reduce restrictive practice and seclusion. Jennifer is the co-author of the HOPE(S) Model of Care to reduce long term segregation which has been developed and implemented across Health and Justice settings nationally.
She consults with a number of organisations and is an expert member of a number of National Reference Groups to reduce restrictive practice across mental health, learning disability and autism services. Jennifer is a strong advocate for working in equal partnership with people who use services to deliver safe, effective and compassionate care.
Beth Morrison
Beth’s son has complex additional support needs including Epilepsy. Following a face down restraint at his special school causing significant injuries, Beth became a passionate campaigner on the use of inappropriate restraint and seclusion involving children and young people with disabilities in schools. Her campaign reached the UNCRC in Geneva and has already resulted in changes to Scottish Government guidance.
Beth completed the BILD PBS coaches programme and was awarded BILD’s “Outstanding Achievement Award” for protecting Scotland’s most vulnerable children in schools.
In 2017, she founded Positive & Active Behaviour Support Scotland (PABSS) a small charity supporting families who love and care for children with complex needs and communication disorders. PABSS provides, support, advocacy & training on understanding behaviour as communication.
In 2018 Beth was delighted and honoured to be named an “Outstanding Women of Scotland” by the Saltire Society. In 2019 PABSS produced a joint report with the CBF: Reducing Restrictive Intervention of Children and Young People and Beth is now working on an update to this using data she has personally collected from over 760 family case studies. Meanwhile, she is still campaigning and supporting families UK-wide co-ordinating with charities and professionals in the field of learning disability to ensure the rights of the most vulnerable children, young people and adults are respected and upheld.