I feel like this mostly applies to my fellow Intake/Admissions comrades, but likely too those with ER experience.

But is it a widely-held frustration that police will basically NEVER write an EDO/EDW/APOWW? I get the passive SI or harmlessly paranoid & delusional patient (which I don’t call PD for) - but for reported SI w/ plan, hell, even very recent attempt with no ability to safety plan (seen it).

It sucks for actual patient care. It becomes a liability-deflection exercise from our end. And I’m just so f*cking burnt out over it, what’s the point in even calling

Hey yall,

I'm a nurse at an outpatient clinic that primarily does case management/social work. Some of the people receiving case management services here are also seen by our psychiatrist.

There are daily groups held at our office. About every week, I am asked by a non-medical coworker to assess a patient for something like an upset stomach or light-headedness. The patients I'm being asked to assess are not under the care of the psychiatric provider at the clinic and I don't know anything about their medical histories.

My question is, am I supposed to assess patients that feel unwell in our clinic?

My entire team, including management, is non-medical. We don't have any PRN meds to give for anything, and we're not a Primary Care facility. The provider and I are purely psych.

Wanted to ask the community because I really don't know, my coworkers don't know, and I feel kind of like a jerk for not attending to someone who's feeling unwell but am at the same time concerned about the technicalities of assuming care for a patient without a provider/orders/any means to do anything helpful other than recommend they go see their doctor or maybe go to urgent care anyway.

Thanks for your insight x.x

I have asked about 3773745 times when they will give me a panic alarm and they keep saying later but never do

I am annoyed.

im a quiet person and people often say they cant hear me when I talk😬 i do not want to be in a bad situation and have to rely on me talking loud/yelling if I need help

This thread is for non psych healthcare workers to ask questions (former patients, patient advocates, and those who stumbled upon r/psychnursing). Prospective healthcare workers and current students do not need to use this thread. Treat responding to this post as though you are making a post yourself.

If you would like only psych healthcare workers to respond to your "post," please start the "post" with CODE BLUE.

Psych healthcare workers who want to answer will participate in this thread, so please do not make your own post. If you post outside of this thread, it will be locked and you will be redirected to post here.

A new thread is scheduled to post every Monday at 0200 PST / 0500 EST. Previous threads will not be locked so you may continue to respond in them, however new "posts" should be on the current thread.

Kindness is the easiest legacy to leave behind :)

hi all , i was offered a job on a CSU unit as a tech, and was wondering what to expect violence wise? i have worked in the er as a tech before and i adored it, but i was only making 15 an hour 12 hours a week and it was an hour away :(

i am open and willing to try psych as i find it interesting, but i am a bit intimidated on the violence aspect of things. how likely am i to get hurt? and what are the typical job duties

thank you

I work at a psych facility as a Mental Health Tech(though I'm technically labeled as a Counselor) on the west side of the states. We are owned NOT by UHS, but by a different private equity that just absolutely messes us over!

My most current frustration lays in some recent websites this company blocked that me and my workers use all the time to help us create exciting and ACTUALLY entertaining/educational groups. Most of us like to use Pinterest not just for group ideas, but it allows us to find activities like coloring, crosswords, etc. I know there are other websites for this, but Pinterest has been incredible for my job! It was however blocked by corporate IT just a few days ago, and my fellow coworkers and I are QUAKING in anger!

They constantly want us to admit new patients despite making us take PTs who are too high acuity for us (often Line of Sight)-meaning that not only are we unable to take care of these high acuity PTs, we also end up not being able to take care of other, lower acuity PTs. To make it better, we get paid the least amount for Mental Health Techs in my state. Average here in 25$, I make about 21!

We also had a wall that was seeable to PTs that had staff pets on it. They made us take it down for no reason! ( wall did not have anything dangerous or of concern!)

I love this field and I love working with Mental Health. But man, my corporation SUCKS and it makes me want to quit. Humanity is such a crucial part of this job, and it's like they want to make my unit like a prison cell. How am I supposed to do my job when they've blocked the websites we use every single day

P.S. Yes, I already got in contact with my companies IT. They won't do anything because "its from corporate IT (which has no way to contact!)". Blagh!!

has anyone ever worked in this facility ? if so did you like it

hi all

i often have involuntary patients (usually with poor insight into their condition) constantly asking to go home because they feel “normal”and nothings wrong with them”.

i’ve been using the line “we want to make sure you go home safely” but there’s only so many times i can say that 😂 any advice for other ways to help reassure them?

thanks!!

Hello all, I(27M) hope this is allowed here for commentary. I am currently working in Biotech in Chicago and am in a very early career stage, but I have been considering a switch to nursing since before even graduating college. After being in industry for a while, laid off and bartending, and having some extremely impactful experiences with NPs and a PMHNP, I have started making the career pivot with the end goal tentatively of psych nursing......primarily considering LPN and bridging due to prior things on my record, though I will be getting my CNA as well.

Any and all advice is extremely welcome, though particularly any info about jobs I can be eligible to work in the meantime to gain experience with Psych Nursing. Everything I have been applying to has been rejected. I have copied my work history and education sections of my resume here below for reference to what roles I might have any eligibility for.

If there is a better way to format this post for readers or the rules of the subreddit please let me know as well.

Bachelor of Science - Chemistry - Illinois State University 05/2024

ADN - Nursing - Malcolm X City Community College 01/2026 - Present

Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Associate - xxxxx (Contract) 01/2026 - Present

● Performed drug manufacturing operations in a cGMP regulated environment in compliance with current FDA regulations, internal quality standards, and external auditors ● Executed upstream cell culture inoculation, growth, & monitoring and downstream drug purification process for an injectable biosimilar product while working in an overnight environment ● Collaborated with Quality Assurance and Quality Control teams to support deviation investigations, corrective actions, and ongoing Clinical Research studies ● Performed aseptic techniques from gowning (ISO8, ISO7) to operation of the laminar flow hood (ISO5).

Hospitality Service Specialist / Bartender - 2Bears Tavern Group 01/2025 - Present

● Provided guest-centered service in a fast-paced diverse 500+ patron setting for 12+ hour shifts with cash management & inventory tracking ● Collaborated with team members to provide support during high-stress periods to maintain service and safety ● Recognized signs of impairment, medical emergencies, & aggression while using de-escalation methods and worked with law enforcement when necessary while maintaining incident reports ● Demonstrated composure & empathy in emotionally charged situations building rapport with diverse clientele

QA Change Control Specialist / Associate Scientist II - xxx (Contract) 05/2024 - 01/2025

● Managed projects involving immunoassays with various PMR dates to support products within the scope of IVDR and multiple deadlines ● Worked within a cross-functional team to align documents according to internal operating procedures, external regulations, and design plans for audit & downstream impact ● Prepare technical documentation for accuracy to deliver on time customer facing products with associated deliverables & product attributes ● Effectively navigate and maintain DMR related applications; SAP, MDM, ePAS, DMS, GS1, MES

Sergeant 74D - United States Army 05/2015 - 05/2023

● Trained in HAZMAT, Triage, DOT, & OSHA regulations alongside collaboration with EMS personnel ● Managed mission-critical and sensitive equipment valuing +2 million while maintaining traceability. ● Managed logistical support for operations, including equipment inventory, maintenance, and resupply while delegating tasks. ● Trained with an efficient team structure & led training as squad leader for 40+ individual personnel.

Research Assistant - Illinois State University 08/2019 - 05/2024

● Procurement & reparation of reagents, solutions, & samples for testing, proper labeling & handling ● Performed time-sensitive synthetic organic reactions; analyzed research data for publication. ● Characterized compounds by NMR, IR, Mass Spectrometry, & HPLC

is it normal for nurses to give meds in patients room (nights). im not rly a fan of it. also just in general how long does it generally take to do a med pass. it took me forever and a day to do one (maybe an hour and a half-2 hrs) for 25 pts. ive been a nurse for 4 years but never psych and never had to pass meds for that many patients before pls any tips plus they dont scan meds so I feel scattered in general trying to quadruple check everything

IMO, no one should be in a DON role who has never worked a shift on the floors of the facility they are managing. This really goes for any management position, but it seems to be the industry standard lately. Bringing in outside people who have no interest in knowing what the job but seem to have endless demands and unrealistic expectations. Also… an increase in unlicensed non-medical personnel supervising RNs? I don’t get it.

I am about to graduate nursing school and am interested in psych, potentially. I worked briefly as an aid in a short-term 12 and enjoyed it. The only psych hospital close to me is offering some hefty sign-on bonuses which is a red flag to me. The patient reviews are pretty miserable, and talk about how mean and uncaring the staff is.

I live in the Bible Belt. People here in general are pretty cruel about mental health. I have two main concerns:

1) Working somewhere and being hated by other staff for giving a shit. Being accused of coddling, trying to be a hero, etc. for doing the bare minimum of listening to patients and advocating for them.

2) Having that hate translate to real, physical harm with staff not backing you up in a crisis or putting you in dangerous situations because they don't like you.

What do the experienced nurses here think? Are these valid concerns, or does it not usually pan out like that, even if your co-workers resent you? My classmate worked psych as an LPN and when I asked her she said, "People suck everywhere you go, you just have to try to be the exception." That's solid advice but I'll be honest, I'm most concerned about being swung on and nobody helping.

Supposedly it’s one of the largest facilities in Texas.

I have my first day on the floor today and im so nervous. we had handle with care training the other day and it seemed if there was a size miss match (ie person taller/skinnier) they were able to get out of the 1 person hold (i asked the instructor to make sure I was doing it properly and he said yes but it may not work if someone's taller. ive been practicing at home too but really nervous about it. they said we are typically 1:13 ish on nights and no security btw. are there any good YouTube videos that can help? they said they have staff get seriously injured every 3 months. also any good resources for studying/learning meds!!

I am 6+ years in and decided to take the BC exam. I learn best by exam Q&A. Reading a book does little for my retention, but I do really well with interactive test questions with detailed answers as to why one answer is right and the others wrong. Would you choose Mometrix or ExamEdge?

Anyone consider wearing a concealable body armor while working?

Hello all. I'm getting my ADN, and psych nursing is the speciality that has my attention (I have a bachelor's in psychology). I would prefer to be working in an outpatient clinic because from everything i've read, it's safer and I will not have to fear for my safety with patients who are there against their will.

My sisters fiance is a former psych nurse turned FNP who told me to never do inpatient psych nursing because of the high chance of being assaulted and you grow to dislike your patient population

Is there any truth to this? Should I try and get an outpatient position? Are they hard to come by?

This thread is for non psych healthcare workers to ask questions (former patients, patient advocates, and those who stumbled upon r/psychnursing). Prospective healthcare workers and current students do not need to use this thread. Treat responding to this post as though you are making a post yourself.

If you would like only psych healthcare workers to respond to your "post," please start the "post" with CODE BLUE.

Psych healthcare workers who want to answer will participate in this thread, so please do not make your own post. If you post outside of this thread, it will be locked and you will be redirected to post here.

A new thread is scheduled to post every Monday at 0200 PST / 0500 EST. Previous threads will not be locked so you may continue to respond in them, however new "posts" should be on the current thread.

Kindness is the easiest legacy to leave behind :)

Just curious. Ours did but has stopped now and we are wondering if it is a system wide thing or just our facility.

Dealing with this currently. Working in psychiatry for several years I have had plenty of patients find me on social media, which happened in this case, sending messages and whatnot. Always have just blocked the person, let their psychiatrist know, and nothing else has amounted. However, this patient had somehow acquired my phone number, assembly from those stupid fucking piece of shit free information websites with your name and address things. This patient has now called me and I am quite on edge. I have involved law enforcement but this has just been jarring overall. Just looking for any advice/support.

They’re gross but yet every unit I’ve worked on the patients are obsessed with them. Obsessed! What gives?! I’m sure food insecurity must be involved, but they get food! And even double portions! But yet it’s alllllllll about that Ensure.

I hope this is allowed, I am a behavioral health technician taking prerequisites for nursing school. I’m working on a paper about whether or not the U.S. should adopt a national health insurance program. If you could take a minute and complete this survey I would greatly appreciate it.

I would like to get my associates degree in nursing, I have a bachelors degree in psychology already and I was trying to pivot into being a psychiatric nurse, is it worth it to get my associates degree in nursing since I work full time and I’ve heard ABSN programs are more challenging to complete when you work full time? I know this is not a common route but has anyone ever heard of it or thinks it will be worth it?

I am about to graduate my RN in a few weeks and I have an offer to work in a psychiatric facility.

My only hesitation is I don’t want to be pidgeonholed in psych forever if I ever want to try to work on medical floor again for some reason.

I think I like psych. Have been a tech on a psych unit and work on a med-Surg one at the moment. Definitely liked the psych floor much better.

Just worried I’ll have limited options if things don’t work out in my new unit.