State/Forensic Hospital Facilities Video Game Policies and Practices
| States | Notes | |
|---|---|---|
| Video games are not permitted | Alabama Georgia Hawaii Idaho Mississippi New Mexico (n = 6/19; 32%) | |
| No video game policy, but video game use by patients is permitted | Alaska Indiana Montana Ohio Oklahoma Oregon South Dakota Tennessee (n = 8/19; 42%) | Alaska: Some games are available for use during certain times of the day. Games are reviewed by staff prior to use on unit. Games of a “graphic nature” are prohibited. Indiana, Oregon: Gaming systems are all offline (no Internet connection). Montana: Some patients have personal video game players. Gaming systems are all offline (no Internet connection). Ohio: Maximum-security facility has video games available in “honor room,” which is accessible to patients who demonstrate behavioral control. Gaming systems are offline (no Internet connection). Staff monitor video game use by patients. Hospital is currently investigating development of a policy focused on the use of games with violent content by patients. Oklahoma: Patients may use games with Internet connection. Video game use is monitored by staff. South Dakota: Access to games is limited, and selection of games is monitored by staff. Tennessee: Video game use is on computers and only without Internet access. |
| Policy is in place governing video game use by patients | Arizona California Minnesota Missouri Virginia (n = 5/19; 26%) | Arizona: Use is monitored/managed by nursing staff. Missouri: Video game consoles are available for patient use under supervision and without Internet access. Video games cannot be used during treatment groups or milieu activities. Virginia: Each facility in the state can choose whether to allow access. Facilities that permit video game use only allow them to be used without Internet access. Facilities that permit video game use require staff supervision during video game use. |