Community Psychiatric Nurses

Community psychiatric nurses, social workers, other drug counsellors, management, administration, plus medical input... 

Clonidine. This drug is now well established on the withdrawal of opiate addiction. However, due to its ability to produce postural hypotension and sedation, its use is often limited to in-patients. It is being used for out-patients in some centres but it is necessary to ensure daily contact with the patients so any side effects, particularly low blood pressure, can be monitored and this may be possible for example through the Community Psychiatric Nurse (CPN) of a Community Drugs Team. Further work is needed in its use for outpatients before it can be generally recommended. 

Some teams may have only one member, typically a Community Psychiatric Nurse (CPN), whilst others may have upward of twelve members (some giving sessional input, others full-time). Some may... 

Haloperidol, zuclopenthixol, fluphenazine, flupentixol and pipothiazine are available as depot intramuscular injections for maintenance treatment of patients with schizophrenia and other chronic psychotic disorders. Provided the patient is willing to agree to have depot injections, usually by a community psychiatric nurse at intervals of 2-4 weeks, the need to take tablets two or three times a day is removed. Poor compliance with oral medication is the most common cause of admission to hospital with a relapse of schizophrenia. A reduced initial dose of the depot medication should be given, with a review for unwanted effects after 5-10 days. 

Registered Mental Health Nurse (RMN) / Community Psychiatric Nurses (CPNs) Care-coordinate... 

Kolanowski, A., Fick, D., Waller, J., Ahern, F. (2006). Outcomes of antipsychotic drug use in community-dwelling elders with dementia. Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, 20, 217-225. 

This book does not focus on these other treatment modalities. It simply focuses on a non-MD therapist and a physician working together to care for their common patient. However, the non-MD therapist could be a psychologist, a social worker, a marriage and family therapist, a psychiatric nurse, or a counselor. When we refer to physicians, we could mean a family physician, a psychiatrist, an internist, a pediatrician, or an obstetrician-gynecologist. To simplify matters, we refer to the therapist and the physician throughout this book. This book is primarily intended for therapists who want to build collaborative relationships and learn the biological information they need to communicate with physicians. 

Psychiatric nurses and psychiatrists are particularly well suited as members of the medical team, as they can also be alert to organic mental disorders caused by conditions such as head injuries, toxic exposures, preexisting illnesses, dehydration, or hyper-/hypothermia. Because nurses have a tradition of practice in homes, in schools, and other natural settings, they tend to be readily accepted by members of the community. Agencies and staff that will be activated for counseling and... 

To provide some measure of safety and to keep the employee in contact with headquarters or another source of assistance, cellular car phones should be installed or provided for official use when workers are assigned to duties that take them into private homes and the community. These workers may include parking enforcers, union business agents, psychiatric evaluators, public social service workers, children s service workers, visiting nurses, and home health aides. 

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