Have you ever wondered what being a Mental Health Nurse means? What skills you would need? Or what a typical day in the life would look like? Make sure you’re all caught up with Specialty Nursing: What Makes a Good Psych Nurse! Now let’s dive in to an interview with Sara, a real life Mental Health nurse!
Name and Education
Hi! My name is Sara and I am a bachelor prepared nurse. I graduated from California Baptist University with my BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing).
Where Do You Work?
I work as an Adult Behavioral Health Nurse.
How Long Have You Worked This Position?
A year and 5 months at my current job, but have been working in behavioral health since March, 2020.
What Made You Want to be a Mental Health Nurse?
As I went through the nursing program, I realized that the patient’s mental health was just as equally important if not more than their physical health.
What are the Most Common Skills Needed to be a Mental Health Nurse?
A big part of working with behavioral health patients involves having good listening skills, the ability to assess a patient’s body language, good communication, being observant of your surroundings at all times, know the basic protocols for a patient withdrawing from Alcohol/other substances, and the ability to set firm boundaries.
What Personal Qualities does a Mental Health Nurse Need to Have?
When working with this patient population it is important to not take things said personally, to have empathy, lots of patience, good intuition, and good coping skills.
What Does a Typical Day as a Mental Health Nurse Look Like?
On a Psych/Behavioral Health unit, you never know what to expect. However, the usual routine would look something like making rounds/assessing assigned patients, speaking with the treatment team consisting of social worker/psychiatrist/discharge planner/therapist/AM shift nurse, processing and activity groups, serving patients 5250 holds, and admissions/discharges throughout the day.
During the night shift, the typical ‘day’ would consist of assessments, addressing patients with insomnia, admissions, and handling any other medical/behavioral incidents that arise during the shift. Depending on the level of the unit’s acuity, the typical day may also include giving IM medications, PO PRN (oral as needed) medications; and, as a last resort placing patients in seclusion, 4-point restraints, or a physical hold. Any form of restraining a patient is not taken lightly, and every other method of de-escalation is utilized by staff to avoid the patient’s ‘denial of rights.’ Some facilities will have patients spilt by acuity, but this isn’t always the case.
Visit A Nursing Guide to Patient Restraints for more info.
What is Your Most Favorite Part About Being a Mental Health Nurse?
My favorite part about being a behavioral health nurse, is getting to see the psych patients after they’ve been stabilized and return to their baseline. It’s amazing to see how much a patient changes from beginning to end. With the patients who come in suffering from anxiety or depression, it’s rewarding to go out of my way to make them feel valued and heard. There’s also the connection you make with your team, that helps keep me going through the stressful days. Some of the things we face as psych/behavioral health nurses connects us in a unique way.
What Should Students Looking to go into Psych/Mental Health Nursing Know about the Field?
It is a rough field to work in, especially at first. It can be mentally draining, so it’s very important you don’t take any negative comments the patient’s may say personally. You must know when to step back and make your own mental health a priority. As a Psych/Behavioral health nurse, you will get cursed at, insulted, and told things you never thought you’d hear in your life. You have to remind yourself where you are, and that the patient is there for a reason. Some patients will be what we call ‘frequent flyers’ and will be in and out of your unit constantly. Others are homeless and looking for food and shelter, so will say anything to get put on a legal hold. Most of the time though, the patients who come in are genuinely crying out for help.
Getting to see patients return to their baseline and completely change into a whole different person sometimes, makes it all worth it in the end. Another key component to working in this field is dealing with the legal portion of things. At a locked psychiatric facility, most patients are being held against their will on a legal 5150 (aka a 72 hour) hold. It is important to be familiarized with the different types of legal holds, the patient’s rights, and types of hearings that take place to ensure the patient’s meet criteria to be under a legal hold.
Anything Else You Wish to Share?
This field can really take a toll on your own mental health, so as I said before don’t forget to make your mental health a top priority. It helps to have a good support system of family/friends around you and discover healthy coping skills for stress that work for you.
Thank you Sara for your loving service to those with mental health conditions!
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