LuciGirl

:) Thanks for your correspondence re: child/adol psych nursing! I'm soon to be 45! Wow! 2 grown kids of my own. It is interesting to read that there were few takedowns/seclusions where you worked. I'm very very concerned at the declining attitude of staff on the unit I am leaving. I am going prn on the locked unit but will be working with children/adolescents in an outpatient behavioral health program for the same hospital which has a wonderful culture/environment.

Depakote is frequently used with the teens we see on our unit. Re: antidepressants & mood stabilizers - be alert for side effects and don't be afraid to ask docs to try a different one. Ex. Headaches are a common side effect for some folks with certain SSRI's - if the headachaches don't subside in a couple of weeks with the help of tylenol and stress mgt techniques - talk with the doc - may take a few different tries, but it is worth it - Weight gain is another SE - walk with your teen or do daily exercise with them to really help them keep a handle on it. The appetite often increases leaps and bounds - so its super important to W A T C H portion sizes and snacking - find healthy, crunchy, low cal snacks and stock the frig and cupboards - water/water/water :) READ the blackbox warnings for meds - get well acquainted with the meds and don't be afraid to ask questions of docs as frequently as you feel necessary. Lots of good resources on the internet. International Society of Psychiatric Nurses has a child/adolescent division which is another good resource. Check out websites for mental health at the top psych hospitals: Mclean in Boston, Menninger in Texas. Best wishes :balloons: :balloons: :balloons: :balloons: :balloons: :balloons: :balloons: :balloons: :balloons: :balloons: :balloons: :balloons: :balloons: :balloons:

There is a book called Restraint/Seclusion Free Environments that presents the Engagement Model and trauma focused care - very good book and this is the model the hospital "says" it is going to introduce. Good point about examining my own issues of abandonment - introspection always so very important esp for those of us working in mental health.

Re: specialty certification - I believe most have to have ceus that are approved by ANCC. Becoming a provider of CEUs (directly) thru ANCC is major pricey but if you check around different state boards of nursing - you can go thru them to get providership and it is around $1,000. Georgia Nurses Association is one to check with (800 324 0462 or [email protected])

?Question? I've done some workshop presenting but want to market further. Does your friend have any suggestions for marketing oneself and what is a ballpark figure of what to charge for giving a presentation - hourly rate? I'm in the midwest. Thanks

To: HarryPotter - Thanks for your reply. I am looking elsewhere for work, but feel like I'm "abandoning" the kids that come to the unit I work on. I am hopeful about a new approach to dealing with kids that mgt is looking into - just learned about it today, but still, I need a new environment of co-workers that are supportive and more positive.

Being a patient advocate is a great part of being a nurse, but sometimes, your co-workers are stuck in status-quo mode. The move towards a restraint/seclusion free environment makes sense to me, but many of my co-workers in psych are stuck in old ways of dealing with things and now I feel like the odd person out because I speak up for kids being treated disrespectful and staff who are way too physically forceful.

I would really like to do some travel nursing in the area of child/adol psych nursing. Where have you worked? You may PM me. Thanks a bunch

After 20 years in nursing and numerous jobs, I find myself again at a point where management refuses to discipline unethical, unprofessional behavior of some workers who seem to be the "untouchables". Disacknowledgement and minimization of my concerns about verbal abuse and excessive physical force used on young children and adolescents in a hospital behavioral health unit. I am shocked that I am being made out now to be "the only one that thinks there is a problem." Anybody else worked with children/adolescents in psychiatry and felt that coworkers were abusive. Help. My heart is breaking for these children. The hospital is one of those that has a ton of banners and other advertisements about being a "TOP 100 HOSPITAL".

Razor blades hidden in bras, books - the bible

We are seeing the flu-like, withdrawl symptoms more and more in patients who miss a dose or more of their SSRI. Textbooks call it "SSRI Discontinuation Syndrome". Fancy Smancy terminology because they don't like the "sound" of the word "withdrawl". Cross titration is the way to go when switching to a different med. Have heard many times from patients that they need to cross titrate very very slowly. Example: Going from Paxil 20 mg day to Zoloft 50mg initially - drop the Paxil down 5 mg each week. Rather scary the impact on the brain even when a person is trying to switch to another med due to "poop-out syndrome". Hang in there. -LuciGirl Psych Nurse:balloons:

:balloons: I am a registered nurse with 20 years experience in the USA and am very interested in doing temporary contract nursing in the area of child/adolescent psychiatric nursing in New Zealand, Samoa or other south pacific region. Would greatly appreciate any information about work in New Zealand and/or what child/adol. psych hospital nursing is like. Thanks so much everyone.

I'm glad you shared your experience. The more we expose situations that are going on - the more we will recognize unprofessional behavior and learn how to deal with it and hopefully find resolution.

I've grown weary of nasty, backstabbing, snoopy, crabby, mean, sarcastic, condescending nurses who swear one minute and then blab about church the next.... I would really like to just leave nursing completely. It is a very unhealthy profession. I say this after having several jobs over 25 years always hoping the next job would be better, but finding more idiots in the next workplace.........no wonder there is a nursing shortage. Mgt doesn't listen, doesn't respond to concerns. Lip service doesn't cut it!.............. ----------------------------------------------------

The bottom line is your nursing license and I agree that you have to protect it. I have been so frustrated, because I continue to run into difficult nursing jobs - not because of the actual patient care, but because of bullying and unprofessional behaviors of co-workers and unsafe staffing patterns, therefore, I leave after 1 to 2 years, and then I have an overall poor looking resume....thinking I should just do travel nursing - 13 weeks at a time and then scoot to greener pastures.................. ----------------------------------------------------------- QUOTE=Sadie04]Hi all. I need advice. I'm giving my notice tomorrow and transferring to another dept. within the hospital. I love the patients, most of the staff, and even my current schedule, but the staffing for the last year has been horrendous. They recently closed 4 beds because we don't have enough staff. The straw that broke the camel's back was last Wednesday; I was working 7-3:30. I sat down to listen to report and saw that I had 9 patients. I was working with an LPN. I went to the charge nurse and asked why I had 9 patients, how many call-outs were there? She said there weren't any call-outs :angryfire I told her the assignment was unsafe. She gave me a CNA along with the LPN. Then PACU called an hour later; they wanted to send me a 10th patient!!! The charge nurse refused the patient, explaining that there were 31 patients on the floor with only 4 RNs. Somehow I made it through the shift, but I refuse to continue to put my license in jeopardy. I've gone to the HN and AHN with my concerns and things just continue to get worse, so I'm leaving. I'll be giving 3 weeks notice to the HN, but I really want to explain my reasons to her. The problem is, she gets very defensive and doesn't allow people to discuss their concerns. She just says things like "we're working on fixing the problem, we're hiring new staff, and closed 4 beds, etc" How can I relay my reasons for leaving and have her hear me out? She can be kind of intimidating.