hpcat

If you're interested, give it a try. I've been doing it for 3 years and love it. You will learn to recognize when patients are escalating and how to bring them down. A good rappor with your staff is essential, as mine have actually prevented me from being attacked a couple of times. It's so rewarding to watch patients who are paranoid, delusional, agitated, suicidal etc. become clearer, calmer and stable with your help.

Just an FYI, psychiatric nursing shifts are typically 8 hours instead of 12. That's because the patients are really rough on the staff. Don't assume psychiatric nurising is easier, in fact it can be much more difficult. Some of my coworkers left psych to go to medical positions because they couldn't handle it.

If you work inpatient in a state psychiatric hospital or short-term acute hospital unit or facility, you need CPI. Typically the hospital will give you the training in a class. I have worked for the state and short-term acute, you need CPI to protect yourself, your staff and your patients.

Try to present yourself with confidence, they will want to know if you can maintain your cool in an emergency.

For this type patient, you need to know crisis prevention & intervention (aka self defense for psych nurses), you need to be able to medicate with PRN and/or stat meds, over objection if necessary, and you need to be able to use seclusion and/or restraints. Violent psychiatric patients are not to be taken lightly, you can get very seriously hurt. Not telling you to leave, but I would, pregnant or not. Your facility is not prepared for this level of agitation/aggression.