Psychiatric nursing or mental health nursing is the specialty of nursing that cares for people of all ages with mental illness or mental distress, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, psychosis, depression or dementia. Nurses in this area receive additional training in psychological therapies, building a therapeutic alliance, dealing with challenging behavior, and the administration of psychiatric medication.
Caroline, Basic Nursing, 1999
Mental health nursing skill:….care of clients with deviations in mental health, however provides a challenging opportunity for nurses to use these ability fully, must be emotionally available, able to listen, non punishing, supportive, understanding, and encouraging….
Clinton & nelson, mental health nursing, 1996 : 1
The primary role of mental health nurses is it meet the needs of the consumer, and that do this effectively involves taking in emphatic and critical stance on mental health policy and mental health care.
Patricia D. Barry, mental health & mental illness, 1998 : 72
Nursing is an art and science that combines and integrates the theories and practices of many different fields: social sciences, such as psychology and sociology; basic science such as anatomy, physiology, microbiology, and biochemistry; and medical science the diagnosis and treating of illness. Nursing is biopsychosocial science-that is, in assessing and planning care for the human responses to illness, it draws on knowledge of human biology, psychology, and the human social system of family, friends and community as the foundations of its practice. This approach to assessment is called a holistic model of care.
Stuart Sundeen’s & Laraia, Psychiatric Nursing, 1998: 15
Psychiatric nursing is an interpersonal process that promotes and maintains behaviors that contribute to integrated functioning. The patient may be an individual, family, group, organization, or community. The three domains of psychiatric nursing practice are direct care, communication and management.
Principles of Mental Health Nursing
1. roles and functions of psychiatric nurse
§ mental health nursing began to emerge as the early 19th century and at that time developed into a specialist with the unique role and functions.
§ there are 4 factors that can determine the appearance level of mental health nursing, namely legal aspects, qualified nurses soul, namely legal aspects, qualified nurses, land practices, and initiatives from the nurses themselves.
2. therapeutic nurse patient relationship
3. conceptual models of psychiatric nursing
§ consists of 6 kinds, namely: psychoanalytical (Freud, Erickson), interpersonal (Sullivan, Peplau), social (Caplan, Szasz), existential (Ellis, Rogers ), supportive Therapy(Wermon, Rockland
4. Stress adaptation model of psychiatric nursing
5. biological context of psychiatric nursing care.
6. Psychological context of psychiatric nursing care.
7. sociocultural context of psychiatric nursing care.
8. Environmental context of psychiatric nursing care.
9. Legal ethical context of psychiatric nursing care.
10. Implementation the nursing process.
11. Actualizing the psychiatric nursing role.
Events and Trends in Psychiatric Nursing History
| 1773 | First mental hospital in the United States established in Williamsburg, Virginia |
| 1846 | First use of the term psychiatric by physicians attempting to upgrade the status of their work with the mental health |
| 1882 | First school for psychiatric nurses (or mental nurses) established at the McLean Asylum in |
| 1913 | |
| 1920 | Publication of the first Psychiatric nursing textbook, Nursing Mental diseases, by Harriet Bailey |
| 1946 | Passage of National Mental Health Act, which established the National institution of Mental Health (NIMH) |
| 1948 | Publication of the Brown Report, which recommended that psychiatric nursing be included in general nursing education |
| 1952 | Publication of International Relations in Nursing by nurse theorist Hildegard Peplau |
| 1955 | National League for Nursing made Psychiatric nursing a requirement for accreditation of basic nursing program |
| 1963 | Passage of community Mental Health Act |
| 1960s | Initial publication of psychiatric journals |
| 1970s | Specialty certification of psychiatric nurses |
| 1980s | Differentiation of basic and advanced practice for psychiatric nurses |
| 1990s | Significant advances in biological, genetic, and pharmacological influences on psychiatric disease |
Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing: Areas of Practice
1. Basic Level Functions
§ Health Promotion
§ Intake Screening
§ Case Management
§ Milieu Therapy
§ Self-Care Activities
§ Psychobiological intervention
§ Health teaching
§ Crisis intervention
§ Counseling
§ Home visiting
§ Community Action
§ Advocacy
2. Advanced Level Function
§ Psychotherapy
§ Psychobiological interventions
§ Prescriptive authority for drugs (in most states)
§ Clinical supervision/consultation
§ Liaison nursing
Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing’s Phenomena of concern
Actual or potential mental heath problems of clients pertaining to:
1. The maintenance of optimal health and well-being and the prevention of psychobiologic illness.
2. Self-care limitation or impaired functioning related to mental and emotional distress.
3. Deficits in the functioning of significant biological, emotional, and cognitive system.
4. Emotional stress or crisis components of illness, pain, and disability.
5. Self-concept changes, developmental issues, and life process changes.
6. Problems related to emotions such as anxiety, anger, sadness, loneliness, and grief.
7. Physical symptoms that occur along with altered psychological functioning.
8. Alteration in thinking, perceiving, symbolizing, communicating, and decision making.
9. Difficulties in relating to others.
10. Behaviors and mental states that indicate the client is a danger to self or other or has a severe disability.
11. Interpersonal, systemic, sociocultural, spiritual, or environmental sircumstances or events that affect the mental and emotional well-being of the individual, family, and community.
12. Symptom management, side effects/toxicities associated with psychopharmacologic intervention and other aspects of the treatment regimen.
From : ANA Statement of PMH Clinical Nursing Practice and Standards of PMH Practice, 1994.
Library List :
- Frisch Noeren Cavan and Lowrence .E.Frisch. (2005).Psychiatric Health Nursing third edition.
- Antai Otong, Deborah. (1995).Psychiatric Nursing: Biological and Behavioral concept.
- Yosep, Iyus. (2009). Keperawatan jiwa (Edisi Revisi).
- “Psychiatric and mental health nursing” (18 November 2009) by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
