Vestfold Hospital kept psychiatric patients strapped to belt beds for days after any danger had passed, including one for more than 18 days, Norway's Ombud found.

In a visit report published on 15 May 2026, Norway's Parliamentary Ombud, acting as the national preventive mechanism against torture, reviewed restraint decisions in three acute psychiatric wards at Vestfold Hospital from 1 January 2025 up to its 10-12 November 2025 visit. Ten restraint episodes lasted more than 48 hours, one patient was belted for more than 18 days in a single episode, and the hospital repeatedly failed to document why restraint continued, including while patients were asleep or cooperative.