Nurses' experiences of encountering patients with mental illness in prehospital emergency care - a qualitative interview study

Navigating oneself through the eyes of the other - meanings of encountering ambulance clinicians while being in a suicidal process

PURPOSE

The suicidal process contains both observable and non-observable phases, and patients have described the process as characterized by loneliness and darkness. Ambulance clinicians encounter patients in all phases of the suicidal process but little is known on what meaning this encounter has to the patients. The aim of this study was to elucidate meanings of encountering ambulance clinicians while being in a suicidal process.

METHODS

Data were collected through fifteen individual interviews with eight participants who had lived experiences of encountering ambulance clinicians. Inductive design using phenomenological hermeneutical approach was used.

FINDINGS

Patients are impacted by the clinicians, both in how they find their value in the situation, but also in expected trajectory. Three themes; 'Being impacted by representatives of society', 'Being unsure of one´s own value' and 'Regaining hope in moments of togetherness' generated the main theme ´Navigating oneself through the eyes of the other´.

CONCLUSION

The way ambulance clinicians communicate impacts how patients navigate themselves in the ambivalence about living or dying, and the encounter either consolidate a feeling of being a burden, or instil hope of an endurable life. Through conversation, clinicians could support the patients in taking the first steps in the journey of recovery.

Exploration of Nursing Care for Individuals With Bipolar Disorder in a Manic Episode: A Qualitative Study

BACKGROUND

Bipolar disorder is a mental illness that is chronic and has frequent relapses.

OBJECTIVES

The purpose of the research was to study the nursing care of patients with bipolar disorder in the mania phase.

METHODS

A qualitative study was employed in this study. The sample consisted of 10 nurses working in psychiatric clinics and data were collected through semi-structured interviews. Thematic analysis was applied for analysing the data.

RESULTS

Of the 10 participants, 70% were female and 30% were male. The mean age was 48.7 years. All participants were registered nurses and most of them held a Master of Science degree. Their work experience ranged from 10 to 30 years. Three main themes emerged when analysing the data obtained from the interviews with the nurses, those themes were a) Echoes of Vigilance: Navigating the journey, b) Amidst the Tempest: Attending to the Patients' Complex Needs, and c) Restoring Balance: The Nurturing Hands of Bipolar Nursing Care, each of which could be divided into several sub-themes.

CONCLUSIONS

 Nursing care plays an important role in symptom improvement and disease control by providing patient support, managing pharmacotherapy, preventing suicidality, and educating patients about the disease and self-management strategies.

Nursing students' metaphors of first clinical experiences of encountering patients with mental disorders

BACKGROUND

Psychiatric wards are one of the most stressful medical centers. Apprenticeship in mental health can cause feelings of stress and anxiety among nursing students. Investigating nursing students' beliefs about mental illnesses is very important to improve nursing education. The present study aimed to identify nursing students' metaphors for their first clinical experiences of encountering patients with mental disorders.

METHODS

This descriptive qualitative study was conducted on 18 undergraduate nursing students studying in two nursing colleges at Guilan University of Medical Sciences, in the north of Iran, in 2022. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed using Critical Metaphor Analysis by the MAXQDA 2007 software.

RESULTS

The analysis of nursing students' metaphors led to the emergence of 36 metaphors and 5 categories. These categories were "experience of dealing with a mental patient is similar to fear mixed with excitement", " patient is similar to an errant human", " psychiatric hospital is similar to a prison", "nurse is similar to a prison guard", and "clinical instructor is similar to a supporter, sympathetic and knowledgeable friend".

CONCLUSIONS

The results showed their negative attitude towards the psychiatric hospital and health care providers. It is suggested that the findings of this study be taken into consideration in the planning of clinical education of nursing students.

Meeting the Needs of Older Adults with Mental Ill-Health in Non-Psychiatric Care Settings: Self-Rated Confidence in Helping and its Co-Variates within a Multiprofessional Study Sample

In this paper we sought to explore health and social care professionals' self-rated confidence in helping older adults with mental ill-health in non-psychiatric care settings. A cross-sectional survey study was performed exploring the participants' (n = 480) confidence in helping. Confidence in helping was analyzed together with background characteristics and selected explanatory variables, such as the workplace and work experience of the participants, their personal experiences of and attitudes to mental ill-health, as well as their knowledge in mental ill-health among older adults, by means of descriptive statistics and logistic regression analysis. We found that approximately half (55%) of the participants were confident in helping older adults with mental ill-health. The odds ratios for being confident in helping were significantly associated to the workplace of the professionals, professionals' attitude to and experience of mental ill-health, and knowledge of mental health among older adults. To increase confidence in helping older adults with mental ill-health, we recommend confidence-building interventions, for example, educational programs, through which knowledge of mental health among older adults is increased and negative attitudes are challenged, especially within the context of specialist somatic healthcare.