What to expect from your psych. nursing clinical

OrthoRN09 · Mar 30, 2009

I did a very short psych rotation for my clinicals just last fall. We didn't pass any meds or anything like that. We were basically there to observe and use our therapeutic communication skills. At first, I thought it was a waste of time. But I came to realize that it was a very important part of my nursing education. We learned how to communicate with mental ill patients. My advice is to treat your patients just like any other patient. They are just as sick as someone on med/surg.

NIGHTWOLF87 · Mar 30, 2009

hey chris...

from what i can remember from my psych rotation as a student nurse, all we did was to go the the facility a couple of days before our clinical day, picked out a patient, prepare a care plan based on the patient's diagnosis, learned what meds he/she was on, why they were rx them, side effects, etc. then on the day of our rotation, we would observe the patient, talk to them, and find out why they are there or why they think they are there. prepare yourself for some crazy replies! i did enjoy my psych rotation. it was very interesting to see all the mental dx you learn about in school in actual people; was a fun semester.

i work part time at a psych facility now (my full-time job is in the nicu) and i see students come in all the time. my advice to you is not to be scared. patients can sense that and some of them feed off of it. in my facility, we are adequately staffed, and whenever we have students come in, we make sure that there is extra staff around them so to ensure their safety. never have had a student get hurt or anything, so don't worry! it's only a semester. good luck and keep us posted how you are doing!

JGarner37 · Mar 30, 2009

I personally did not enjoy my psych rotation. It was a long day (from like 6:30 - 3:30) to be locked up with all of the psych patients. At the mental institution I was at, there were mostly schizophrenic patients. At the end of the day, I felt so emotionally drained. We weren't allowed to give meds, but did a very detailed care plain & also process recordings. I would recommend that you stay very aware of your surroundings. The psych ward is not the place to be overly friendly to the patients, because they may misinterpret that as a personal interest in them. Also my instructor recommended that we cover our last names (she had a previous student where the patient remembered her first & last name, got out, tracked her down & would show up at her house and stalk her). I had a hard time leaving the clinical stuff there (I would think about the patient's stories afterward) and if you can, leave it there.

Although I am definitely not going to be a psych nurse, there was someone in my class who really enjoyed it. The schizophrenics are very entertaining. Just be careful how much information you give out about yourself & you'll be fine. It was very interesting though.

Good luck!