Psych unit job descriptions

[yuyu75]

As a psychiatric nurse, who has more contact with the patients on a floor, the nurses or the social workers? I am deciding between nursing and social work and can't makeup my mind. I guess what I should be asking is, what does a social worker do on the unit? What does a mental health counselor do? What is their role? Also do you have CNA's on your floor, and if so, what is their job like?

thanks

[LaruaRN]

I work in a small inpatient psych evaluation and treatment facility. We have a team comprised of nurses (RNs and LPNs) and mental health professionals (social workers, registered counselors).

We work as a team to maintain a safe milieu for everyone. It is hard to say that one group has more contact with patients than another. However, the social worker doing discharge planning has to spend a significant amount of time on the phone and as a consequence is not as involved in the milieu from moment to moment as other team members. However, she is one of the most respected team members because she plans for housing and financial assistance and medical follow-up for our patients.

As an RN and MSW I personally find psych nursing tremendously rewarding. Night shift in my facility gives me the opportunity to spend time with my patients and believe me there is always somebody awake!

If I had it to do over again, I would become an RN rather than a social worker first. However, my training as a social worker is invaluable to me in my work as a nurse. Best of luck to you in your career!

[yuyu75]

Thanks so much for the reply. I can probably learn alot from you, You have the best of both worlds...RN and MSW!!!

So can you tell me a little bit about the schooling. Which do you think was harder NS or going to school for MSW?

Please let me know!

[LaruaRN]

You asked me to compare social work MSW program to nursing RN school. In a nutshell here is my experience...:twocents:

Social work school involved tons of reading, writing lots of 20-50 page papers, statistics and research, lots of theoretical models, two nine month practicums, not so many tests...lots of opportunities to research topics of interest in depth, choices of classes.

Nursing school involved tons of reading, not so much writing, lots of technical training and hands on experience, clinical rotations which changed every quarter, lots of tests covering a very wide array of topics, a set curriculum.

Best wishes for your future, no matter what you choose.

[amandapmct]

I'm excited to hear that you have an MSW and RN. I have my MA in psychology and am hoping to start the RN program next fall. Did you find that your MSW was valued by employers, even when you had little nursing experience?

[LaruaRN]

Yes, I do feel that it is valued, especially since I work in an inpatient psychiatric unit. Are you planning to work psych nursing?