Did anyone start out in Psych?

Jules A, MSN · Dec 26, 2008

Thanks for the info. I just left a very busy high acuity tele floor after 5 months. It was not a good fit for me as a new nurse. I have 8 years of experience as a special education assistant, so I applied for a pediatric psych position. I just had the interview today and have been invited to set up a shadow day to check out the unit. I too am concerned about losing my med surg skills. The unit I interviewed for is in a free standing mental health facility which is part of Children's Hospital. They have 5 units in this facility, and one on the main hospital campus for acute care psych patients. I think I will take your advice and see if I can occaisionally float to the acute care psych unit after I get established in my home unit. Any thoughts on managing stress as a new nurse in psych, anyone?

Wow I would be in hog heaven at this type of facility! Check out the psychiatric nursing speciality section here and keep us posted. Not sure how much different managing stress in the psych arena is to other areas of nursing. I do try to remember the horrific backgrounds most of my kids have when they are driving me crazy though.

pinksunRN · Dec 27, 2008

I'm currently in my 4th month in an acute psych facility, its my first nursing job and I love it:) In the near future I want to apply for a State Prison job:)

Quilter0225 · Dec 27, 2008

Wow I would be in hog heaven at this type of facility! Check out the psychiatric nursing speciality section here and keep us posted. Not sure how much different managing stress in the psych arena is to other areas of nursing. I do try to remember the horrific backgrounds most of my kids have when they are driving me crazy though.

It is an excellent facility. As far as backgrounds go, my own childhood was no picnic. Ultimately this helps me to be empathetic with the kids. It also lets me hold out hope, because I turned out O.K. The person who schedules the shadow days is out of the office until Monday, so I will get more info then. There are two adolescent units, one neuro unit (autism spectrum disorders), one under ten yrs. old unit, and a permanent residential unit. The opening is in the unit for ages 10-14. I would be filling in while someone is on maternity leave. If she comes back after her leave, I would become a float nurse for the whole facility. If not, I get her job. I am excited!

Jules A, MSN · Dec 29, 2008

It is an excellent facility. As far as backgrounds go, my own childhood was no picnic. Ultimately this helps me to be empathetic with the kids. It also lets me hold out hope, because I turned out O.K. The person who schedules the shadow days is out of the office until Monday, so I will get more info then. There are two adolescent units, one neuro unit (autism spectrum disorders), one under ten yrs. old unit, and a permanent residential unit. The opening is in the unit for ages 10-14. I would be filling in while someone is on maternity leave. If she comes back after her leave, I would become a float nurse for the whole facility. If not, I get her job. I am excited!

Keep us posted, and I'll cross my fingers that you get to keep the job or they love you so much they hire you even if the other nurse comes back. Check out the Psych nurse forum here also for good info.

Quilter0225 · Jan 1, 2009

Keep us posted, and I'll cross my fingers that you get to keep the job or they love you so much they hire you even if the other nurse comes back. Check out the Psych nurse forum here also for good info.

I finally got to do my shadow day yesterday, on New Year's Eve. I was on the adolescent unit for kids in acute crisis. It was a wild day! There was someone in the quiet room when I got there around 1030, and he and another girl pretty much kept it occupied the rest of the shift. At one point they both needed to be in seclusion, so one of them went to another unit to use their quiet room. Then they had to close the home unit's quiet room because the girl ripped some of the padding off the wall and even some of the particle board underneath. This girl ended up in four pt. leathers by the end of the shift. She had been refusing meds for three days, and apparently this was the inevitable result.

Besides all the excitement and drama, I got a good feel for the unit. Staffing for that unit is 1 staff member per 2.6 pts. On the younger unit (with the open position) the ratio is 1 to 2.1 pts. I was really impressed with how the staff worked as a team to support each other. The facility itself is fairly new, so it is decorated nicely and has some new equipment. I really feel that my special ed. experience would serve me well and that I could fit in and do a good job here. I sent an email to the staffing person (out of the office today for the holiday) and will follow up with a phone call Friday. I really want this job! Pray for me! :nurse:

MiaLyse, APRN · Jan 1, 2009

I started psych straight out of school worked there for 20 years. It has continued to be valuable to me in dealing with all patients. Fortunately I did work for a time Float pool, to get my skills up to snuff after I left pscyh. That also has served me well. Now I am not terribly afraid to work where ever the need is in a hospital.

This is what I'll be doing. I went right to psych after becoming an RN. I was previously an LPN and

worked in geri-psych in nursing homes. I am going to start orienting to the float pool to gain

medical skills because I have limited myself hugely by staying only in psych. I noticed how limited I was

when our hospital was talking about a RIF and I started looking around for other jobs. hth's

MiaLyse, APRN · Jan 1, 2009

Leavingteaching,
To answer your questions, as I worked on an acute care psych unit which was hospital based. I was often floated over the years to different units. Which helped me to keep skills I had learned in school and to learn new ones. When I approached the Head of Our Float pool, it was already recognized that I was competent in working on the floors. Hence I worked the float pool where they might need me in the acute care setting of the hospital. That did not mean I went to Emor, worked ICU , I did go to PACU, rather than CCU. I was given stable patients, as they recognized it was not my specialty. Each floor I would go to if I need helped in learning something new or brushing up something I hadn't done in a while , they were helpful.
I now work in an area which is considered specialized Rehab, yet still even though I am not in a float pool, do float to other units on acute care. I always looking at floating elsewhere as a benefit to me. It helps me to keep up rather than perceiving myself as only being able to function in one area only.
It has always done me well to know where to find the policies of our hospital or where to look up technique on something I have not done for awhile.

This is what I am going to do. I am going to stay per diem on Psych and start orienting to Medical so that I can

float to both psych and medical. I think this way I will keep up my skills, still be able to do psych at times

and keep myself marketable.

PurellGirl · Jan 2, 2009

I am scared that I will forget everything I learned in school for med surg! Hopefully I can find a hospital that will let me float to other units so that i can get that exposure.

Quilter0225 · Jan 3, 2009

I am scared that I will forget everything I learned in school for med surg! Hopefully I can find a hospital that will let me float to other units so that i can get that exposure.

I feel the same way. I paid all that money to go through nursing school. I don't want to forget it all. I think if we go into it knowing that that is an issue, and take steps to keep it from happening, we will be O.K. The hospital I interviewed with has magnate status, so I feel that my chances are pretty good.

Jules A, MSN · Jan 3, 2009

Maybe its because I'm older and pretty sure that my med surge skills can fade away without me missing them but I'm also confident that I could find a good orientation program at a local hospital if I should ever get that urge. Psych is just such a good fit for me I don't see myself doing anything else so I plan on getting my Psychiatric NP if I can finish before I'm 100 years old, lol.

Quilter0225 · Jan 3, 2009

Maybe its because I'm older and pretty sure that my med surge skills can fade away without me missing them but I'm also confident that I could find a good orientation program at a local hospital if I should ever get that urge. Psych is just such a good fit for me I don't see myself doing anything else so I plan on getting my Psychiatric NP if I can finish before I'm 100 years old, lol.

Tell me more about the psychiatric NP. Does the NP usually work with inpatient or outpatient populations? What can you do with it? I didn't even realize there was a psychiatric NP as a possibility. Sounds intriguing! :coollook:

Jules A, MSN · Jan 3, 2009

Tell me more about the psychiatric NP. Does the NP usually work with inpatient or outpatient populations? What can you do with it? I didn't even realize there was a psychiatric NP as a possibility. Sounds intriguing!

It is a NP that has psych as their speciality. At my facility they act in basically the same capacity as the psychiatrists because they can prescribe. From what I can tell they are able to do almost the same thing as the Docs but they are nurses and imo have that holistic way about them that makes nursing so special. Around here the money is great and the demand huge. You could even open your own practice. There is a NP section under the Speciality (advanced practice nursing) and they are super nice about entertaining questions about what they do, how to become one etc.