LPN student First day of psych rotation, HELP!

smirn80 · Jul 16, 2007

a pt during my rotation told me once, "this is not like a medical floor, u cant see improvement in pts in days. Its Long Term treatment. Nad he wsa right. DOnt feel like u can "Help" them right away. But know that the limits and structure u provide them helps them in the long run

Barbie38 · Apr 18, 2009

hello to all!! i missed writing here huh?

this time i need your stories on how your anxiety was on the first day of your psychiatric nursing exposure in the mental institution. i am doing my research studies on this.

if any one of you knows where i should look or what website would i be able to see how the nursing students' anxiety are in their first day of their psychia exposure or minutes and hours before they face their clients in the mental hospital or facility.

please , please anyone...i will be very happy to be a member of this website. :specs:

rachelgeorgina · Apr 20, 2009

Try to avoid making generalizations about your patients. Not all psychiatric patients like to "push buttons" as one poster commented, but plenty will. However, I think you see enough of those on the medical/surgical floors anyway!

They are people, just like you and me. & more so, they have illnesses that limit their lives, just like all the patients that you're used to on med/surg floors. The difference is the mode of treatment. You can't cure depression with a trachy and you can't improve a psychosis with an round of IV antibiotics. Psych is very intricate and complex, much like the brain, much like life... Treatment is often a long term combination of many, many things: stabilization, management; medication (find the right medication!), therapy (different forms of therapy), exposure, life skills etcetc

Perhaps it would help to take a squizz at some of the pts care plans and treatment goals for their admission/long term to see what their issues are and how the facility are addressing them. That way, you can determine how best to make the little difference you can in the weeks that you are there as a student.

Forever Sunshine, ASN, RN · Apr 30, 2009

I am a LPN student in an 11 month program. I graduate at the end of July. Yay.

This Monday was the first day of our psych rotation. The classes all doing psych had to report to the psychiatric hospital that we are doing our rotation in, and its a big area and FRIGHTENING. I was driving to the assigned building more scared than a 5 year old on the first day of kindergarten. lol We did not see any patients or units, we just received an orientation and introduction on the facility. I felt a little more relieved hearing that we will not be alone with the patient. I felt even more relieved hearing that the patients are heavily medicated. I don't do well with hostility, I tend to back down and compromise and do what needs to be done to make everyone happy.

All this week its theory part of the class and Monday through Friday next week we go to clinical. The teacher this week told us what to expect, some things about the patients, not to walk in looking scared, what we have to do with the patients all the therapeutic communication, etc.

We have to have a conversation with the patients and observe them. What are some topics that the patients just love to talk about and what are some that usually aggravate and upset them? I know every patient is different but I'm really confused as to what to share with a psych patient. In my med-surg rotation towards the end it became alot easier to have a conversation with my patients. This one patient who I enjoyed taking care of and was quite pleasant for the most part I'd spend as much time as I could after I fed her lunch talking with her and we talked about the area she was from and her children and grandchildren and where she likes to go on vacation. It was one of my most memorable parts of clinical and even though I was scurrying at the end of the day to get everything done that I needed to get in to my instructor, I really feel that helped me communicate with the rest of my patients for that rotation.

Can I ask psych patient these same things? Because I know that some don't have good relationships with their families and I don't want to upset any of them.