A nurse forcibly restrains a competent adult patient who refuses a procedure. How should the nurse manager record this intentional tort?

Battery is the intentional, harmful, or offensive touching of another person without their consent. When a nurse forcibly restrains a competent adult patient who has refused a procedure, physical contact occurs without the patient's permission, which precisely meets the legal definition of battery. This is an intentional tort because the nurse deliberately applies physical force, regardless of whether the intent was to harm the patient. Negligence refers to failure to provide the standard of care expected of a reasonable nurse, involving no deliberate act — it is not applicable here because the nurse's action was purposeful. Assault is the act of threatening harm or creating reasonable apprehension of imminent harmful contact, but it does not require actual physical touch; since physical restraint did occur, assault alone is insufficient to describe this situation. False imprisonment involves unlawfully restricting a person's freedom of movement, which could also be argued in restraint situations, but the most precise and direct classification for forcible physical contact without consent is battery. Nurse managers must document intentional torts accurately to ensure legal accountability, appropriate investigation, and protection of both clients and the institution.