take something or someone in hand

­ 42. PHRASE : V inflects.

If you take something or someone in hand, you take control or responsibility over them, especially in order to improve them:

• I hope that Parliament will soon take the NHS in hand.

... Cobuild

­ take someone in hand:

Fig. to take control of someone; to assume the responsibility of guiding someone:

• Someone is going to have to take Tim in hand and help him out.
• Alice decided that she would take the new worker in hand.