sampaul1966

I work in a UK secure hospital. Most of the patients are detained under mental health act sections for people who can pose a danger to the public when mentally unwell. These sections continue when patients are discharged into the community which means they can be recalled if its thought they're becoming unwell again. A lot of the work is aimed at preventing a relapse of their illness including substance use work. A small number of patients are convicted prisoners who are sent here from prison for treatment. When compared to the previous answer sectioned patients can have enforced treatment if they are on certain sections. Hyperguide to the mental health act is a good guide to the British system

5 assaults in 7 seven years i'm afraid. These range from kick to the groin to punch to the head.

Worked in a secure hospital for 6 years & feel safer than working in an emergency room

substance misuse services in the UK are generally staffed by mental health nurses & thats an area that certainly isn't diminishing in need.

does depend on where your interests lie. Personally i think in mental health you can have more time to "talk" with patients as communication difficulties & difficulties in perception are major factors in our client groups. As a rule the wages in mental health are slightly higher too ! General nursing does give greater opportunity for travel. I think only Australia, NZ, & western Canada accept our Mental health training. If you ever fancy going to the states then general nursing is probably a better choice

5 1/2 years working in secure forensic nursing with qualification in substance misuse too

schizophrenia.com is an excellent site. No illicit drug is good for schizophrenia although in my experience those that stimulate the central nervous system (amphetamine, cocaine, crack etc) or those that can result in hallucinations (LSD, MDMA, cannabis) are particularly unhealthy. The sigificance of stress in both the onset & severity of symptoms is also a factor

I work withina secure hospital rather than a prison although a high percentage of the patients arrive here via the court system. The way to look at it is if people's crimes/behaviour is connected to their mental state then any treatment that improves their mental state should decrease their chance of re-offending. That's how its supposed to work anyway !

have worked forensic (secure hospitals) for 5 years & still love it as its never boring. Might go into substance misuse nursing as i have a diploma in that too & thats different every day

Generally the patient is reported to the police but as most of the patients in my unit are detained for long periods ( average stay 2-3 years) the cases don't go ahead. In one recent case proceedings are going ahead but then the patient assaulted several staff over a week. This is a secure facillity however & the situation is different in non psychiatric settings. The NHS in the UK is supposed to have a zero tolerence attitude towards violence against staff

1 4 weeks induction to unit 2 yes because its been put into action many times 3 i'll know when or if it happens 4 no

Do nurses in the usa learn restraint techniques ? I work in a secure hospital in the uk & we do. I'd feel unsafe otherwise