Equipping nurses with psychiatric mental health nursing skills for the 21st century

In the fast changing environment of 21st century, life can be difficult to manage and personal relationships and interaction more complicated. They cause life stress. Hardiness of personality is therefore more important than before. Nurses are members of society. If nurses are under stress for long periods of time without efficient coping methods, they will become unconsciously fatigued and that will affect not only their occupational life but also their nursing competencies, their own making it difficult help patients and their families to relieve stress and improve their quality of life. Through literature review, this paper will explore how to help nurses to adopt elements of psychiatric mental health nursing and strengthen their physical and mental health in order to improve their personal health and professional skills.     

The future of psychiatric/mental health nursing

The future of psychiatric/mental health nursing will reflect expansion of services to the elderly and chronic mentally ill. Providers of services and their reimbursement will also expand. If the specialty is to survive, changes in the undergraduate nursing curriculum must be addressed so that a larger cohort of nurses select graduate education in psychiatric/mental health nursing.     

精神科护士心理压力与心理健康状况调查

目的探讨精神科护士心理压力与心理健康状况。方法采用心身压力测式量表、症状自评量表对60名精神科护士进行评定分析。结果心身压力测试量表总分≥71分42名,≥49分12名,≤48分6名。主要心理问题为人际关系、抑郁、焦虑、恐怖等。结论精神科护士心理压力较大．心理健康状况较差。人文关怀是减轻心理压力、改善心理健康的有效方法。     

A public school-based referral system for psychiatric mental health nursing experiences

Numerous advantages are anticipated with the implementation of the school-based referral system as a method of providing outpatient clinical experiences for a group of Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing students. The school setting, when used as a clinical site, can provide valuable learning experiences where the student can apply the nursing process with individuals, families and groups. This multi-dimensional involvement reinforces family systems theory as well as group concepts. The nature of the students' experiences through the school-based referral system gives them the opportunity to increase their knowledge and understanding of the three levels of prevention: primary, secondary, and tertiary. The referrals generally constitute secondary intervention, with early recognition/intervention being the focus. Students are also encouraged to assess for factors that would place a child at risk for the development of other problems. With the identification of such factors, primary intervention strategies can be structured and implemented to reduce the child's risk. In some cases, students are involved in tertiary prevention, with a rehabilitative approach employed to assist individuals/families cope with a long-term problem situation. This expanded clinical experience facilitates the application of leadership concepts and reinforces the collaborative role of the nurse in the multidisciplinary provision of client services. Since the Psychiatric/Mental Health component of the curriculum is in the senior year, involvement in such a clinical experience also provides the students with a positive stimulus for the assumption of their professional roles and an opportunity to synthesize all previous learning.     

Supervision as professional development for psychiatric mental health nurses

Clinical supervision is an essential element in the professional development of advanced practice psychiatric mental health nurses, and many interpersonal approaches exist to facilitate this process. This article discusses the issues underlying supervision, the key elements of the supervision process, and the current literature focused on the development of best practices in the conduct of clinical supervision. Recommendations for the implementation of supervision are identified.     

Strategy for teaching evaluation research in psychiatric/mental health nursing

The evaluation research course presented in this paper is one strategy for introducing needed evaluation research content at the graduate level in nursing. The course was developed for students who were in their final semester of completing requirements for an MSN degree with a major in psychiatric/mental health nursing. To provide for active involvement in the evaluation research process, students evaluated a psychotherapy group in which they were therapists. The theoretical framework for both class content and the evaluation research project was based on Bloch's extension of Donabedian's approach to evaluation. Using the theoretical framework as a guide, students investigated both process and outcome as well as the relationship between process and outcome. Students reported that the knowledge and skills gained were valuable to their clinical practice. On the other hand, students found the course to be very demanding and difficult to complete in a 15 week period. One unexpected benefit, however, was that the course helped students to understand group process better.     

精神科护士心理健康状况调查

目的探讨精神科护士心理健康状况和相关影响因素,为改善精神科护士心理健康状况和应付方式提供参考依据。方法对105名精神科护士采用症状自评量表进行测评,并与全国常模进行比较;对开放式病房和封闭式病房护士的症状自评量表评分结果进行对比分析。结果精神科护士症状自评量表躯体化、人际敏感、焦虑、敌对因子分及阳性项目数均高于全国常模（P〈0．01）;封闭式病房护士的心理健康问题较开放式病房护士严重。结论精神科护士存在一定的心理健康问题,而封闭式病房护士的心理健康问题更加严重。     

Re-establishing psychodynamic theory as foundational knowledge for psychiatric/mental health nursing

Psychiatric nursing care is based on an interpersonal process that relies on the therapeutic use of self in the service of patient care. Despite acknowledgment of the importance of the relationship, there has been little attention paid to the knowledge embedded in psychodynamic theory that can provide a basis for understanding the nurse-patient relationship. This paper argues that nurses need to understand and apply such theory if they are to pursue the assertion that the relationship with the patient is the foundation of their practice. The authors discuss the essential components of psychodynamic theory and their application to nursing as well as the possible reasons for the loss of interest in such theory.     

精神科护士心理健康状况及个性特征研究

目的探讨精神科不同年资护士的心理健康状况及个性特征。方法以从事精神科护理工作5年为界，将51名精神科护士分为高年资组和低年资组，采用症状自评量表和艾森克人格特征问卷进行评定并比较。结果症状自评量表测定显示低年资组护士总体心理健康水平高于高年资组护士；艾森克人格特征测定显示高年资组护士在神经质、内、外倾向、精神质3个分量表总标准平均分均高于低年资组护士，高年资组护士人格特征明显内倾不稳定。结论长期从事精神科工作的护士存在不同程度的焦虑、抑郁、躯体化症状和个性的不稳定，心理健康水平低。