This week at clinical I saw the role of the RN when she had to administer a medication to one of the patients because the patient was at risk for harming himself and others as he was almost in an altercation with another patient. The two were separated by staff members and given an opportunity to calm down. One patient did calm down and the other kept acting out and was then given the medication to calm down. The RN gave the med and the child calmed down, the RN observed the patient for any adverse reactions to the medication, but there were none. Another experience included a child that was acting out and destroying property in the unit was going to be transferred to another unit where the patients were older and more well behaved in an attempt to make the patient learn from his peers and be held accountable for his actions.
The situation with the patient acting out at first made me feel very focused and ready for anything to happen. Once the staff separated the two patients I felt more calm, but I still wanted to make sure that the two were not in contact with each other until they had calmed down. I was trying to see how the RN handled administering a medication to someone who was very hard to calm down, but she simply explained what the medication was for and how she would administer it. After a couple of minutes she finally was able to give the med and the problem was resolved.
I feel as though I handled myself well and remained calm yet alert during the altercation with the two patients. If I was the nurse I wouldn't have done anything different other than perhaps being ready to give the medication sooner. The staff were doing a good kob of keeping a barrier to where the patient could not leave his room until he got the medication, but once the nurse took over she handled it well.
What I learned during this day at clinical can be applied to my future in nursing because odds are I will have to administer a medication that the patient is very anxious about and I will have to be able to calm the patient down and administer the medication in a timely manner still. Also understanding the daily routine at a mental health facility.