Psych wards at Christmas time. We are talking decorations!!

PsychLPN2000 · Dec 12, 2009

Wow you're lucky to get a pine tree on the unit. We have a 3ft fake one that patients are unable to get to. The decorations are lacking. We've had a lot of issues here lately so needless to say a tree is a no-no. We do have a large area on the wall that we covered w/paper and made snowballs for people to write on(goals, names, whatever) and made a snowman w/"snow" made out of tissue paper and cut out snowflakes. For the most part our decorations are few and far inbetween. Most of the decorating has been done in our report room (which patients can't see) and a few things are scattered about in the nsg. station. We try to be as fesitive as possible but most of the good decorations aren't allowed d/t potential hazzard. Very frustrating. What little decorating is done, the patients enjoy it. Gives most something positive to look foward to.

chazman1040 · Dec 12, 2009

Is that a real pine tree? I've always thought hospitals couldn't have real Christmas due to the fire hazard. Most Psych units I have been have a few decoration but not many.

7student7 · Dec 13, 2009

One floor I work on has a fake tree, but it's surrounded by one of those u-shaped feeding tables. One patient still tries to mess with it and drives us crazy. The other floor isn't supposed to have a tree because one long-time patient tackled it saying "It has aids! It killed my father!" The only other thing we have is decorated bulletin boards - nice and safe. I like those. :)

pinkiepie_RN · Dec 14, 2009

There have been a few pictures of winter scenes colored on one of the bulletin boards and the outside door into our unit has been decorated, but I think our activity director will probably put up some decorations. I'll post when I have more information.

pandora44 · Dec 14, 2009

Our unit, which is low acuity, is very festive. We have a large, fake tree with tons of decorations on it. Last week, three of the patients cut out a couple hundred snow flakes - yes, we let them have real scissors in the lounge for the project and no one got hurt. We did have to stop them from covering all the glass around the nurses' station with the snowflakes. Instead, every door on the unit has some. All the pictures are covered with wrapping paper. Very cheery. Everyone seems to like it. As far as I know, we've never had problems on our unit with the decorations.

pinkiepie_RN · Dec 16, 2009

We've got a tree and decorations everywhere. It's a fake tree, but it's pretty. :)

Smitty08 · Dec 16, 2009

I remember once when I used to work inpatient the unit had a tree one year. All the patients really loved it. Especially the one who picked it up and swung it as a weapon! That was too bad. The other patients did not want to see that tree go away, but away it went. That was the last year we had a tree! It's awfully nice to have, but not the best accessory for an acute psych. unit!

Fuzzy · Dec 17, 2009

As a person who has been a patient in a pysch ward during Christmas, it was quite nice to see decorations. I don't remember a tree but the paper decorations on the walls made the place a little "nicer" for those of us that were forced to be there over the holidays.

I wish more places would do things to take the sterility out of the atmosphere. Psych wards are very scary for most patients. I had a relapse last February and ended up in a different place. It seemed like the staff didn't care to be there which made things a lot harder for those of us that had to be there.

Fuzzy

rachelgeorgina · Dec 17, 2009

One hospital that I have experience with had each unit decorated with baubles hanging along the hallway and outside patient's doors, around the med window and on the desk outside the nurse's station. Even the dinning room was decorated.

During the Olympics last year the patients made banners that hung in the dinning room.

Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN · Dec 17, 2009

Depends on the unit. On most of the units, any decorations are behind the nurses' station or in the staff lounge--if they're placed in the mileu, they're paper.

On detox, since most of our patients are high-functioning and not psychotic or suicidal, we have a fake tree with carefully selected decorations on it in the patient lounge, and the patients even got to do the decorating. We also decked out the nurses' station.

kiwipsychnurse · Dec 21, 2009

Is that a real pine tree? I've always thought hospitals couldn't have real Christmas due to the fire hazard. Most Psych units I have been have a few decoration but not many.

Yes a real one, no mention of a fire hazard. I'm at the rehab end, so noone plays with the tree. I just phoned two of the acute wards in our complex and they both have trees up. One ward has a real pine tree, the other two fake plastic ones.

Thanks for all your responses. Great to get an idea of what different hospitals do this time of year.