National Preventive Mechanism The commissions frequently found that patients were cared for in beds set up in hallways and were sometimes restrained there; this is an absolutely unacceptable violation of their human dignity and their fundamental personal rights. The reasons for this, however, can be found in the fact that individual smaller hospitals are responsible for psychiatric care for a relatively large catchment area and the available capacity is small. In the case of a high number of acute emergency admissions, bottlenecks can occur; regular beds alone do not provide much help in this regard. Furthermore, the commissions often found that restraining straps on beds were constantly visible to patients and no arrangements were made so that the restraints could not be seen by uninvolved third parties. This promotes the feeling of being helpless and at the mercy of the institution, creates a permanent threatening scenario and is perceived by the person affected as humiliating and shameful. Restraints used under degrading conditions It must be strongly demanded that these practices cease. The use of alternative measures and the careful planning of a constant expansion of resources within the scope of existing financial possibilities can make a considerable contribution to this. The operators of hospitals have reacted to reproaches by the commissions insofar as restraints are now covered up and the use of beds in the hallways is being reduced to a minimum. As the example of the Wels-Grieskirchen Clinic shows, moving into a new, modern building may be necessary to fulfil current standards of psychiatric care. ¾¾ Staffing and spatial framework conditions for therapeutic treatment must be created in accordance with current standards. ¾¾ Restraint of patients must take place out of sight of third parties; use of restraints can only be used with constant and direct supervision in the form of a watch by an attendant. Use of net beds in Austria about to end Since 1999, the CPT has unambiguously reiterated that “net beds be withdrawn from service as a tool for managing agitated persons in all psychiatric/social welfare institutions and facilities in Austria”. This has not been realised in Vienna and Styria. The NPM, as well as the Human Rights Advisory Council, have repeatedly addressed this problem area in the last two years and have highlighted it publicly with the goal of pushing through the implementation of international human rights standards. This has been effective. Clear violation of human rights standards 93