Psychiatric, Behavioral, and Mental Health Nursing

Catalog description

This course examines the influence of psychological, emotional, cognitive and social development of individuals and groups across the lifespan. Students combine this foundational knowledge with their developing understanding of social determinants of health. This course will help students learn to identify and assess individual, family and group level needs for those persons at risk for or experiencing behavioral or psychiatric/mental health challenges using evidence-based interventions applicable across the continuum of care. Emphasis is placed on the role of the professional nurse in assuring the delivery of equitable behavioral and psychiatric/mental health nursing care. The course addresses nursing phenomena of concern related the meanings of a behavioral or mental mental health illness and the development of healing relationships with individuals, families, and groups. In addition, the student will learn essential advanced communication strategies, including exposure to skills necessary for motivational interviewing, essential to engage individual and families in mental health promotion and treatment. This course provides the tools to enable students to construct effective interventions groups with patients, collaborate with disciplinary and inter-professional colleagues, and understand the healing dimensions of environments. Clinical and simulation experiences are designed to provide sufficient opportunities for clinical reasoning, clinical care, and clinically situated knowledge integration.