Adult Mental Health

MrsBradyMom · Jul 8, 2010

I've worked psych for the last 2 years; adult & geri acute inpatient. I love it but it's definitely not for everyone. I work 7-3 shift. There are days when it's rather slow and you have all the time in world to talk to your 4 patients. Other days, I want to run screaming and never look back. Some days can be hazardous to your health and some days you never want to end. You asked what it entails....all depends on where your unit is (free-standing or in a hospital). This will most likely dictate how much nursing care you provide by way of wounds, IV's, etc. Beyond that, and in addition to physical assessments, charting, all aspects of personal care, etc. the other duties I have are:

Running group sessions

q 15 minute suicide/behavioral obs

Meal duty

Showers

1:1 as needed

Med nurse

Now of course, those additional duties are spread between staff, usually in 1 hour increments. As far as pros and cons, I'll give it a shot:

Pros:

Having the same client every day for at least a week

Truly getting to know & understand your client

Leisurely pace at times

FUN! Group sessions are always a blast

Cons:

High rate of burnout among nurses (usually 2 years)

Can be dangerous

Can be trying if you have your own personal issues that day

*Can* result in "losing" nursing skills (depending how much exposure you have & type of unit)

Usually pays less than other specialties

Of course that list is my own opinion, based on my region and where I work. I have heard many psych nurses say they make more than or see more wounds than xyz. For me, you either love it or hate it. You'll know very quickly which side of the fence you stand on :)

Good luck!

Pegasus65 · Jul 8, 2010

MrsBradyMom,

Thanks so much for your reply. I was beginning to think I wasn't going to get any! lol. I had an interview with Adult Mental Health this morning was why I was trying to find out what I would be letting myself in for beforehand from a more seasoned nurse. This might sound silly, but I had such a bad experience with LTC over the last several months... that I am trying to be really careful with the next job. Even though I graduated in June of 09 I am a relatively nurse nurse. It would be really nice to find somewhere to stay for a while! Especially since I have started classes to work on eventually finishing my RN.

The interview went really well and I strongly suspect they will offer me a job, especially since I told them I would really like to work 12 hour shifts on the weekends (and one of my professional references called me to tell me they had been in touch with her already). My former classmate is working in the Adult Mental Health unit and she really likes it. She did stress to me to have them put me there instead of the General Mental Health, which seems to be a more long-term situation. First they wanted me to take GMH, but said there wasn't a problem if I wanted AMH. This is a state run hospital. There seems to be an orientation period of several weeks so hopefully that will be helpful. I am so crossing my fingers this will work for me!

Have a great evening!

Pegasus65 · Jul 9, 2010

That should have been relatively "new" nurse lolol. :lol2: Sheesh! I need better proofreading skills!

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Jul 9, 2010

I worked PRN as a medication nurse at a psychiatric hospital about four years ago. More specifically, I worked in the adult chemical dependency unit, primarily during the 3-11pm shift. The benefits of this job included the fast pace, the interesting patients, and the fact that there was never a dull moment. I also like the fact that visitation tends to be very limited on adult psych units because I personally don't like interacting with families and visitors all day.

The negatives: (1) patients occasionally stripped naked, smeared feces, threw chairs across the room, yelled obscenities, or basically made a scene (2) true drug-seeking behaviors (3) unpredictable amount of admissions (4) some patients can be manipulative and try to get under your skin (5) some psychiatrists don't want to be bothered with phone calls, but I suppose this is true with physicians from all different specialties.

Jules A, MSN · Jul 9, 2010

the negatives: (1) patients occasionally stripped naked, smeared feces, threw chairs across the room, yelled obscenities, or basically made a scene (2) true drug-seeking behaviors (3) unpredictable amount of admissions (4) some patients can be manipulative and try to get under your skin (5) some psychiatrists don't want to be bothered with phone calls, but i suppose this is true with physicians from all different specialties.

yup these are the negatives or the occasional adrenalin rush if you appreciate that kind of thing, lol. the adults are interesting because you will see a variety of diverse backgrounds, diagnoses and the inner workings of our brains is fascinating. seeing medication start to work in a previously raging psychotic is nothing short of amazing. many times i feel a close connection to my patients because you will get to know someone's psychosocial history and hopefully have time to spend talking to them about their past and future as they start to heal. if not, the chronic ones are also interesting and the stories you have will be priceless. most days i can not believe i actually get paid to do what i do. :up:

pagandeva2000, LPN · Jul 9, 2010

I worked in a psych hospital as a tech for 12 years. Had interesting times. I was certified to administer oral medications, and that sure came in handy when I finally started nursing school...I remembered the psych meds very well. Had some patients that liked to smear as well as make a meal of their feces, one particular one that used to flip his feces on the ceiling like pancakes. Whenever I floated to that floor, I would wear a surgical cap just in case. Others had the strength of 10 men and would bend the pipes like pretzels.

Some of them were very lively...funny as heck! I even looked forward to some of them...we had some 'seasonal' visitors, so, I would know that by the winter, certain ones would make an appearance. We also had some that were not really mentally ill, but used to pretend to be so during the cold months for shelter. We had one prostitute that had a hit on her for some reason. Her pimp used to visit her every Sunday and would by Chinese food for the entire floor, staff included. By the end of that spring, I overheard him whispering that 'all was clear'. The next time she had unescorted priviledges, she skipped out, never to return. Even saw an ex-boyfriend there...LOL (no, I didn't drive him that way).

After awhile, though, it was like babysitting, and I grew tired of it. I don't have especially bad memories, but, I am glad I left, because I would have never become a nurse if I stayed, because it was then, when I started working in a hospital as an aide that I had an opportunity to return to school on the facility's dime to become an LPN.