Factors affecting mental health nurses working with clients with first‐episode psychosis: A qualitative study

Abstract

Introduction Although there is much research on mental health nurses working with individuals presenting with psychosis, there is a lack of knowledge about the factors that impact the experience of nurses in the presentation specifically of first-time psychosis. Aim This study aimed to explore the factors that impact on the experience of mental health nurses working with individuals and their families who present with a first-time psychosis. Method This qualitative study was conducted through individual semi-structured interviews with eight mental health nurses recruited from community mental health settings with a minimum of 2 years post-qualification experience. Data were then subjected to a thematic content analysis. Results This study identified the importance of therapeutic engagement, as well as the need to have clear pathways to care and building capacity through clinical supervision and training when working with this population. Implications for practice Mental Health nurses should engage with additional training, formalized clinical supervision and avail of peer support in order to improve confidence, skills and quality of care, leading to better therapeutic engagement. Pathways to care should be embedded within the wider community to ensure ease of access for individuals and their families. There should be more recognition of the social impact on the individual during untreated psychosis with regard to isolation and withdrawal as well as factors which also affect help-seeking behaviours.

Nurses' leadership in psychiatric care—A qualitative interview study of nurses' experience of leadership in an adult psychiatric inpatient care setting

“…Working in a psychiatric care settings is at times considered challenging (Molin et al, 2016). These challenges have also been found by Odeyemi et al (2018), who described an overwhelming workload among nurses working with patients newly diagnosed with psychosis and with a lack of clinical supervision. Nurses also felt abandoned in situations where patients were threatening towards co-workers, other leadership exist already at the beginning of a nursing career, and in psychiatry, it may lead to an overwhelming workload.…”

Sensory‐based approaches in psychiatric care: A systematic mixed‐methods review

“…Therefore, we believe that the positive effect of sensory‐based approaches is partly attributed to the safe environment, and it is necessary to further explore the influence of the quiet room on patients’ mental disorders. On the other hand, the unique relationship with nursing staff provides an opportunity to develop a good nurse–patient relationship, which contributes to nurse–patient communication, promotes the therapeutic effect and reduces the occurrence of aggressive behaviours against nursing staff (Odeyemi et al, 2018). The safe supportive environment generated by the superposition of physical environment and cultural environment is the basis for the construction of sensory‐based approaches or other interventions in psychiatric care institutions.…”

The biological paradigm of psychosis in crisis: A Kuhnian analysis

“…Moreover, the tools that had previously been considered the foundation of practice, such as antipsychotic medications are treated with much greater ambivalence, and for some are no longer the primary focus of therapeutic work (Bressington & White, 2015;Morant et al, 2018;R. M. Murray et al, 2016;Odeyemi et al, 2018).…”