National Preventive Mechanism by health professionals have been disregarded. However, there are also medical facilities that intentionally abstain from personal security of this kind. In fact, based on findings by several commissions (particularly Commission 4) and agreements executed with medical facilities, which are available to the NPM, it can be assumed that security companies are deployed in some psychiatric medical facilities not just sporadically or as an exception in special acute situations, but are part of everyday operations in wards and in the care process with regard to the following activities: Observations made by commissions • Preventing patients from leaving the ward, • Returning patients to the ward, • Searching patients and/or their personal valuables, • Assisting in more serious restriction measures requiring close body contact, • Restraint of patients and supervision of patients, • Supervision during administration of medication and • Assistance in other care procedures (escorting patients to the toilet, shower, etc.). Federal legislators have made appropriate provisions that psychiatric patients may only be cared for by persons who have received training for this very demanding work in accordance with statutory requirements. A job description for psychiatric caregivers has been established and strict training requirements have been stipulated. The special training for psychiatric health and nursing care takes one year and comprises 1,600 hours of theoretical and practical training. Apart from the fact that the Health Care and Nursing Act explicitly stipulates that health care professions are not subject to the Austrian Industrial Code (Gewerbeordnung), under Section 129 (1) of the Austrian Industrial Code, there is not even approximately equivalent qualification for the private security industry that is regulated by law and that refers to the needs of patients in medical institutions and facilities. Discussions by Commission 2 in a hospital in Upper Austria revealed that the training for security personnel about methods of restraint offered by the hospital itself was extremely inadequate. This was showcased by the example of a security employee, who stated to the commission that he had only received a one-time two-day briefing and considered himself competent to intervene in acute situations only based on his training as a guard in the Austrian Army, which had taken place decades ago. Care only by staff with training in health care occupations 95