Clinical Journal
After having a week without the mental health clinical I was excited about returning, after vising the site and becoming familiar with it from the last time. After receiving a new unit that I would be interacting with, I was looked forward to meeting the boys at lunch. Interacting with the boys from the unit and the CNC allowed me to practice therapeutic skills as well as reflect on the nursing role within this field. This week’s clinical left me with a lot of questions about our society and the impact a home environment can have on a child.
Knowing before-hand that I was going to be splitting my clinical time between being at the unit and being with the CNC allowed me organizes my efforts. Cayenne and I walked into the unit and were greeted by the nurse. The nurse explained to use that she had already given out morning medications but had to go to “central” to pick up supplies and then count all meds in the cart. Counting the meds in the cart meant that she would have to document how many pills or tablets were left of a certain type of medication so that the following week it could be done again to keep track of medication availability. It was enlightening to see the nurse illustrating more client care then I had previously seen before. While at the unit I continued to read multiple charts of the patients being able to identify multiple behavior patterns. The most interesting interaction of this clinical was sitting at a lunch with an individual. I introduced myself and began conversing with the patient from the unit and this time around I was not struggling to find words or experiencing awkward silences. At one time the patient asked for my name and began to ask me questions instead of vice versa but most of the questions were simple and I was able to answer them with ease. After interacting with the individual I found myself wondering what issues had he faced in his young life to lead him to the actions that got him placed at a treatment center. As a swim instructor for children during the summer I compared our conversations and his domineer with other children and did not find any huge alarming actions. I reflected that this is why mental health is such a huge concern and can be very dangerous because it is impossible to predict another’s thoughts. Unfortunately I was not able to read the chart of the individual from lunch but if I could go back I would as to try to answer my questions.
I spent the remaining time of clinical with the CNC which was very short, due to the meeting schedule with the clinical board of the center. My interaction with the CNC was uneventful because she was doing paperwork while I continued to read the different unit’s charts. I did have multiple conversations with her that not only challenged my own understanding but as well as put into perspective for me the role of nursing in a mental facility. She mentioned to me her speculations of the patients that were homosexual and we awkwardly had a conversation about the numbers of homosexual individuals at the facility. I just found the conversation extremely interesting and passed no judgement. I was happy to hear that the CNC invited me to return and would show me other units. I read a chart in particular at the unit with the CNC that again challenged my understanding of mental health. An individual with a history of criminal activity confused me because I began to wonder if the actions were caused due to negative choices or because they were stemmed from mental health issues.
I am looking forward to returning to the treatment center the following week to continue to understand and expand my knowledge of mental health client care. Upon returning I plan to read more charts because although it is not the same as interacting with patients I enjoy reading a lot and am able to learn through reflection. I hope that in the future at clinical I am able to do more patient care with the RN’s at the clinic on site but until then I am content.