It’s been three weeks since your arrival to
designated Psych units, what are some of your thoughts and feelings about the
environment, the patients, the staff and you?
I must say, I love and very much enjoy the
learning experience at our clinical site this semester. Spring Groove surprisingly
has exceeded my expectations. What I most enjoy is the joy I feel we bring to
the patients when we are there interacting with them. Our therapeutic games and
group times are times where I feel we really bond with each and every patient who
chooses to participate. As the weeks go
by, I have noticed how the patients are becoming my comfortable with us. The one’s
who once resisted socializations look forward to talking to us as soon as we
arrive on the unit. The ones that were once, isolative with a flat affect, are
noted to be smiling and are more talkative. It’s almost liked they had to watch
and feel us out in opinion. I truly appreciate that because, in the world of
mental health, one I feel, should not easily trust everyone they encounter. As a
group, we have become more aware of many of the signs and symptoms of many of
the current mental health diagnosis, so we are able to identify some of the
noticeable side effects experienced by the patients such as rapid/pressured
speech, severe hand tumors, the Parkinsonism shuffle, and those that are
responding to internal stimuli (RTIS).
The staff, so please do not get me wrong because I
too am a mental health worker at a hospital facility. I have always enjoyed my
position and went to school to get my BA for the purpose of assisting those
living with some form of mental illness. The problem that I have noticed with
some mental health workers is that many lose their “good insight” after so many
years of working in the profession. Many also tend to lose their compassion. I
do not mind the workers at our current facility. What I have noticed is that
they make sure that their patient care rounds are faithfully completed every 15
mins. Besides that, they do not interact in any social form with the patients.
They are more so there to monitor them, redirect them for safety reasons, and
to make sure that each receive their prescribed medications. There are a few
male staff members who seem to interact very well with the patients, including playing
table games but as for the female workers, I have not seen that side as of yet.
The second week we were there, we discovered that there is such a thing as “quite
time” from the hours of 4pm to 6pm. During those hours, the television is shut
off, and the patients are left to roam the hallways with nothing to do or keep
their attention. Many appear more depressed in their affect during those hours.
I found those hours to be very sad and feel that it changed the atmosphere. To me,
quite time seemed more of a punishment than anything. The rationale was that it
allows for a calmness. It actually made
our time there very sad but our game time/ group activity helped to brighten
the patient’s mood. I strongly disagree with this method but the charge nurse
is “in charge”
The environment, well I guess there is not much to
say when you have individuals locked inn at a facility where many have resided
for 13 plus years. It is stuffy, hot at times, and managed the best it can be.
There is a television room, game room, dining hall, and the hallway for
everyone to pace if need be. What I can say is that, staff make sure that there
is plenty of food and snacks for the patients. They also have a good schedule
system where activities are orderly. There is phone time, shower time, washing cloths
time, meal times, and medication times. Each patient in my opinion is on top of
things because that is their day to day routine. Overall, I feel that the staff
have the patient’s best interest at heart which is all that matters. The
patients on the other hand although many wish to be release at some point sooner
then later, are functional, supportive of one another, and compliant with the
rules of the facility. I am really appreciative to have this learning opportunity
and feel blessed to be in position to assist those in need.
Nana B. Osei-Bonsu
