How to Become a Psychiatric Nurse
More and more people today suffer from mental and psychiatric diseases like depression, hysteria, schizophrenia, and psychosis. The stresses of daily living, like work and school, have taken their toll on many people. Psychologists and psychiatrists try to control these illnesses and help the mentally ill to cope in their time of need, but they also need help and assistance from other health care professionals. Here’s where psychiatric nurses come in. Psychiatric nurses help the psychiatrist help patients get back on track and restore their sanity and well-being.
Duties of a Psychiatric Nurse
Psychiatric nursing is a branch of nursing that deals with the care of patients confined in the psychiatric ward for mental and emotional illnesses. While nurses and nursing interns who work in other hospital wards can be assigned to the psychiatric ward, a psychiatric nurse should be able to handle the challenge of patients confined in the ward. Psychiatric nursing is very taxing and can test the body and the mind.
A psychiatric nurse practioner’s day usually includes the following duties:
Assist the psychiatrist or attending physician in administering medications and therapy to patients in the psychiatric ward.
Help in the daily tasks at the ward, including serving food, tidying up after patients, and making sure that everything in the ward is neat and orderly.
Assist wardens and orderlies in putting a violent patient into custody, or confining him or her to special quarters in case he or she threatens other patients.
Help patients in the psychiatric ward cope with conditions so that they can lead a happy and fulfilling life.
How to Become a Psychiatric Nurse
Psychiatric nursing requires a lot more training than other specializations in the nursing profession. In North America, registered nurses can work in the psychiatric ward, but the advanced practice psychiatric registered nurse (APP-RN) is usually is in charge of and runs nursing duties in the psychiatric ward. In Canada, the Registered Psychiatric Nurse (RPN) is a specialized nursing designation in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan.
Courses in nursing almost always tackle general practices in psychiatric wards, but advanced practical and classroom training is required for psychiatric nurses. The training may include advanced or elective units in psychology, clinical psychiatry, and psychiatric nursing practices.
The Psychiatric Ward
The place where psychiatric patients are confined in is called the psychiatric ward. The psychiatric ward is usually found in a separate ward or building of the hospital, or is a special hospital funded by the government or by private organizations. While many clients belong to the outpatient departments (they only visit the psychiatric ward or clinic during appointments while they take medication at home), some patients do need to be confined to the psychiatric ward at the discretion of the psychiatrist. A stay at the psychiatric ward is called “institutionalization.” A patient may be institutionalized for a few days, or his or her lifetime, depending on the degree and type of mental illness.
Psychiatric Nurse Jobs
Even the best nurses may find life and duty in the psychiatric ward very challenging, especially because patients are unpredictable. At the ward, a nurse must always be on the alert for patients who are unable to take care of themselves, or who threaten other patients. Caring for different patients in a psychiatric ward may also be made more stressful if the ward is understaffed. If you really want to pursue a career in psychiatric nursing, you need to have the inner strength necessary to cope with the demands of the job.
For nurses, caring for the sick means to pull out all the stops to make sure they live a healthy and productive life. The same also holds true for psychiatric nurses. With this guide to help you along your career path, a job as a psychiatric health care professional does not have to be intimidating or taxing. Psychiatric nursing careers can be very rewarding.