Help a nursing student out, please!

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Hi everyone!

Nursing is my second major (former is psychology), I switched my major with the sole reason of going into psychiatric nursing...and I can't lie the money/job security was also a contributing factor.

I worked incredibly hard through the pre-nursing classes to get into my nursing program,and have not started classes yet. However, after hearing what the program entails and looking through the skills that we are required to learn in our clinical skills checklist (a good 60 med/surg skills and maybe 10 psych skills?) my intuition is screaming that this was a wrong decision (figures it would kick in once I made it in my program).

However, I have heard that psych nursing is nothing like nursing on any of the other speciality units; this is actually what I like about it! Is this true?

When I think about walking around a hospital, passing meds, and doing vitals everyday (yes, I know nurses do much more; i'm just generalizing) for the next 30+ years it makes me cringe. I don't want to change dressings, and hook my patients up to an IVs. My psych rotation isn't for another year, so would anyone be kind enough to tell me what being a psych nurse is REALLY all about?

I know psych is where I really hope to end up, so I really hope I didn't chose the wrong major!

Thanks everyone!

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My stepmom is a Psych nurse and loves it!!!!

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Specializes in Psych (25 years), Medical (15 years).

bella8:

It would seem that you're quite the realist and want to consolidate your life: Do something that you can enjoy and make a good living at it. Nothing wrong with that.

"What is Psych Nursing all about?" you ask. In a nutshell, it's performing Admissions. Discussing Issues with the Patient and/or Family. Passing pills. Giving injections. Attempting to orient Psychotic and/or Demented Patients to Reality. Intervening in crisis situations. Running groups, such as Community Mettings, Medication Information, and the like. Sitting in on Staff and Discharge Planning Meetings. And lots and lots of Paperwork.

Of course, duties vary somewhat with the particular population. For example, there's much more Medical and Hands On with the Geriatric Population then with the Child Population.

I hope this gives you an idea of what you may be getting into, bella8.

Please feel free to contact me through a PM, or however, if you wish to discuss anything in more detail.

Dave

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