ajt575s replied to SugarBabe99's topic in Psychiatric
I get to talk with the patients quite a bit. RNs aren't usually only doing med passes, though that can encompass much of your time. We usually have a nurse assigned to meds and a nurse assigned to charge, and we rotate these responsibilities. I was d...
I agree with you. Do not apply to a place where you have been a patient--it's a conflict of interest. We have had patients who wanted to apply as techs after spending some time in our facility, but they were not allowed to do so. Also, we've had pati...
ajt575s replied to SugarBabe99's topic in Psychiatric
I'm a new grad who started in psych, so it can be done. I would strongly suggest that you shadow a counselor/therapist and a psych RN to better understand what their roles are, because they do very different things. Depending on your facility, of cou...
Forgot to mention--I know for sure that Cox Health in Springfield, MO does have a "experienced nurse internship" program for critical care and several other areas. It's about 3 hours south of KC. Just call the HR department if you're interested.
I would recommend calling Truman, KU medical center, and the VA. The VA may be a surprising one for you, since most VA hospitals don't seem to offer fellowships, but the one in Kansas City offers critical care fellowships for new grads, so I wonder i...
I think I should have been more specific. I mean mandatory overtime (which we call "being mandated") in that you are already there, getting ready to finish your shift and leave, then you get a call from the supervisor stating that you are "mandated" ...
How many of your facilities use mandatory overtime as a staffing solution? My employer staffs us inadequately to begin with, then if there's a call in, we end up getting mandated. This has been happening at least once a week lately, plus people find ...
I think you did the right thing really, and dudette10's suggestion was good, as well. I work in psych, so I have to deescalate people all the time who are often aggressive and rude like this guy. Usually, the trick is to remain very calm and not real...
What are typical staffing levels in psych? We're always full and have a general mix of adult patients (many with chronic and acute medical problems, as well). We get geriatric patients, acute schizophrenics, borderlines, depressed patients, manic pat...
ajt575s replied to RoyalNurseBSN's topic in New Nurse
Just to reassure you: I work in psych also. I don't think you'll necessarily get "stuck" in psych, though it may depend on your location. I have seen several psych nurses at my facility leave for medical jobs without prior medical experience, one or ...
I'm in psych right now, and I'm finding that my psych class was not helpful at all. We spent the whole time going over various types of disorders and therapeutic communication for each disease process. During our clinicals, we barely spent any time w...
