I am a nursing student in a BSN program, I am graduating in May and decided I wanted pursue a career in psychiatric nursing. I just accepted a position as a psychiatric support technician in a 38 bed behavioral health unit. I just recently finished my third day on the unit but I am already feeling so insecure. My last shift, I had a male patient that kept coming on to me and trying to flirt with me and was making sexual remarks. I tried my best to politely tell him that it is inappropriate but obviously it wasn't good enough and he tried to touch me so security came and he started becoming very violent towards the security guard, eventually the nurses administered a cocktail of haldol, benadryl, and ativan.
I felt really bad because I feel like I could have handled the situation a lot better. Sometimes I feel as I am too nice to work in psych, I try to be as kind as I can to the patients but I don't want to be taken advantage of. Later on that day, I had two other female patients flirt with me. One asked me to contact her when she gets discharged for a date and the other female wanted to give me her number to hang out with her because she was being discharged that day. I guess I just need help knowing how to set boundaries, but still being as nice as possible. I just want to do well in this position so eventually I can make a good psychiatric nurse. Any advice for a tech who wants to eventually be a psych nurse?
Have they given you a self defense or physical intervention class yet? Taught you go hands on in case you need to? Does your unit do seclusions and or restraints?
Unfortunately, aggression from psych patients is part of the territory. But it should be taken care of quickly. At my work, patients will be secluded for being a danger to the security of the unit. And it's the job of the techs to do hands on and takedowns.
I've been working as a psychiatric support tech for 2 weeks and .... already have had a chair thrown at me, kicked in the stomach, poured water on, and been punched in the face.. what is wrong with me?!
GeminiNurse29
130 Posts
Have they given you a self defense or physical intervention class yet? Taught you go hands on in case you need to? Does your unit do seclusions and or restraints?
Unfortunately, aggression from psych patients is part of the territory. But it should be taken care of quickly. At my work, patients will be secluded for being a danger to the security of the unit. And it's the job of the techs to do hands on and takedowns.