Beginning the recovery journey in acute psychiatric care: using concepts from Orem's Self-Care Deficit Nursing Theory.

A national agenda has been established for mental health systems to move toward a recovery model of care. Recovery principles are embedded in the foundations of nursing science and practice. Orem's Self-Care Deficit Nursing Theory (SCDNT) is in alignment with the ideals of recovery and can provide a structure for changing cultures on inpatient psychiatric units.

Gender differences in the roles and functions of inpatient psychiatric nurses.

This study explored the difference between male and female psychiatric nurses' job performance and job satisfaction levels on an acute care inpatient unit. The amount of time male (n = 28) and female (n = 45) nurses spent on 10 specific functions and roles during a shift were observed and recorded. The nurses also self-rated the amount of time they spent on these specific functions and roles.

The role of the inpatient psychiatric nurse and its effect on job satisfaction.

This study recorded the amount of time 73 nurses working on inpatient psychiatric units spent on specific functions during a shift. The nurses also rated the amount of time they actually spent on the functions versus the amount of time they ideally would like to spend. Nurses spent only 2.

The clinical nurse leader: helping psychiatric mental health nurses transform their practice.

The national movement to transform the health care delivery systems must include a focus on mental health treatment. To address similar deficits across other practice domains, the Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL) role has been created. The CNL is a master's degree that prepares a nurse to use a systems perspective to improve outcomes for a cohort of patient, deliver care based on best practices, and coordinate care in a multidisciplinary team.

Integrating mental illness prevention into community-based undergraduate education.

Including preventive models of health care in undergraduate education is essential as the nursing profession moves increasingly to community-based care. Traditionally, mental health curricula have focused primarily on psychopathology. This article presents current research in the attachment and temperament literature, which provides sound evidence for the need to synthesize prevention of mental illness concepts into undergraduate education.

Precursors of mental health problems for low birth weight children: the salience of family environment during the first year of life.

The purpose of this study was to determine the contributions of infant characteristics and early family environment to the incidence of emotional and behavioral problems for low birth weight children. Data were collected from ethnically diverse families of 110 children who had a birth weight of less than 2500 grams. Results of stepwise regression analysis indicated that inadequate family income, troubles with family cohesion and adaptability, and an infant's insecure attachment to the mother accounted for 48% of the variance in the incidence of emotional-behavioral problems for children.