Week 6: Termination

I can't believe its over! To be honest I am sad its over. I enjoyed working with my client and the other patients on the unit. I learned a lot from these patients, outside of our required course work. What I anticipated coming into this experience is the complete opposite of what happened. I was weary of the patients because I thought they would be explosive and agitated for no reason; however that was not the case. These patients on the unit are brothers, sisters, mothers, and fathers. They have loved ones and they have feelings. They may be mentally ill, but they are still people. I would like to think I received respect from the patients on the unit because I was respectful to them. This was definitely a learning experience and has opened my eyes to another specialty. Thank you to my clinical instructor and my fellow clinical classmates for this experience.

Week 5: AA Meeting

Today I attended an AA meeting in Columbia, MD. The meeting was very similar to what you would see in a movie. People of all walks of life in one room talking, sharing stories, and supporting one another. At the beginning of the meeting we went around the room and introduced ourselves. Since I did not want to be viewed as threat to them I did not reveal I am a nursing student or observer. I heard many stories of those who deal with alcoholism. Many people want to stop drinking but they just do not know how. At the end of the meeting people that were friendly with one another spoke and those that were new acquaintances exchanged contact information. This was a 'judge-free zone' that had a lot of love in the room. No one is this room was better than the next, we were all there just to talk about our own experiences and offer support. It was nice to know there are places that exist where people can be open and honest without fearing shame from others for their actions.

WEEK 6 Termination

I can't believe it is termination time already! It's been quite an experience, I must say. I remember starting my first day of clinical at the SGHC scared and apprehensive at my first encounter with the patients, and I truly wondered how  I would make it through. On the contrary, after week two of the clinical I was looking forward to interacting with my patient. I had a different notion of what to expect during interactions with my patient initially, and my experience with the first client I was assigned  did not help matter much. As the rotations progressed I got better at interacting with my client.
learning to see the person beneath all the symptoms and behavior helped me communicate effectively with my eventual patient . I have also learned to be more empathetic, and also use the right word that would have the appropriate therapeutic effect on my patient.  I terminated with my patient before we gave them a teaching about hygiene, he gave me a hug and asked if I would come around to see him again.

NURS 432: Mental Health Nursing: Week Six

NURS 432: Mental Health Nursing: Week Six: Termination is near for you and your client. Blog about this experience...What did you learn about yourself? Were there any surprises? Discu...

It was an experience that I will never forget.  I did not know that I had it in me to actually sit down and listen to someone telling me about themselves without me freaking out. My first day at the unit was very scary to me ,I have never been in the mist of mentally ill before so I wasn't sure what to expect, but I found out they are human too, they are just sick and needed help to get back to their normal life. I treated my patient with respect and, I listened to every conversation. I am really happy I had this experience.

Week 3: Pros and Cons

The pros to using movies to learn about psychiatric disorders is that it enhances learning. Reading information from a textbook can sometimes only give you a one dimensional view when it comes to the presentation of a disorder. Movies however provides you with a mental picture and can give you a better understanding of what you might expect in a clinical setting. Cons to using movies as a learning tool is that movies are not always accurate and the disorder or character may have been exaggerated for box office purposes. Also, while it does give you a visual example. It doesn't replace an in person interaction.

Week 6: Termination!

Wow, I for one cannot believe that it is that time to say goodbye already. I must say, I am very excited say that this clinical experience has been a successful one. I did not know what to expect when I walk into my cottage, but I am going to be walking away with a feel of gratitude and empowerment. As a group, I feel that each and every member built some kind of great rapport with our clients. The psychoeducational group activities planned by us helped us to interact in a very meaningful way with our clients. We all were given the opportunity to get to know each patient on our unity. I feel that as a group, we all now have a strong understanding of what it is to live with a mental health disorder.

What did I learn about myself? Well, I learned that I have great compassion for those living with mental disorders because I am very aware that one can lose their mental well-being if not careful. I also learned that I am the type of individual who wants to live my life without judgement of others. I learned that I have been given a strong foundation by not only my family/culture but also through my education on how to accept people for who they are. These past weeks I have noticed how my interactions with the patients have helped teach me to be more patient, understanding, and empathetic. Everything in life is a process, and requires patience in my opinion. If these patients whom some are due to a court order can bear down and hold on to the “Hope” of one day leaving the facility, then I should never have a complaint in the world. After all, I am free to roam about in society. I am not locked inn, isolated, and consistently monitored. I am blessed and feel that I have been a blessing to the participants that I encountered.

How did I impact their lives? Well, through our group activities, we grow as a group together. The patients, over time, have learned to trust us, and in my opinion, believe that we have their best interest at heart. We brought them joy, laugher, games, and therapy at the same time. This to me is a component that they may have been missing. We gave them something to look forward to every week. Our interactions were very positive and they received it that way as well. My biggest surprise was just the unit’s policy/practice hours of “quest time” that they patients had to endure while were there because I looked at it from a pointless standpoint.  I can clearly understand that the staff were trying to keep peace but to me, I saw more patients, appearing to be responding to the loss of stimulation by aggressively pacing and I also observed some level of agitation. Overall, this experience was not an easy one but a definite worthwhile. I feel blessed as a future nurse to have had this opportunity.

Nana B. Osei-Bonsu

NURS 432: Mental Health Nursing: Week Five

NURS 432: Mental Health Nursing: Week Five: Blog about your support group experience as a participant-observer.

I went to my church (Redeem Christian Church of
God) grief support group counseling section just to observe what they do there.
New members will stand up and introduced themselves to the group. I stood and
did the same but told them am just an observer and asked if it was alright for
me to just listen to them, everyone welcomed me. People just talked about what
was going on with them and some offer there advice on their coping mechanism. At
the end, they had snacks and drinks and some exchange phone numbers.