Welcome toLakeside (Alternatives) Behavioral Health NUR II!

Summer

~Ms Biggars- X1783; office 2-222; Cell phone: 321.696.1028

~Ms Bowens- Home phone: 407.880.4320

Just a few guidelines for your use during your educational rotation at Lakeside! Your 8 hour day will whiz by and to make the most of it, you need to be prepared!ANY MISSED CLINICAL TIME MUST BE MADE UP DURING THE SEMESTER!! This is a REQUIRED rotation for NUR 2. Find your name/dates on the posted schedule!!!! If you can not locate your name, please alert a Mental Health instructor ASAP so you can be scheduled.

Goals: To provide you the opportunity to

Practice therapeutic communication skills with patients who have a mental illness.

Recognize signs, symptoms and the impact of mental illness, particularly anxiety, depression and substance abuse.

Initiate an interaction with a client with mental illness.

Observe group process.

Participate in an activity group with patients.

Assignments:

Begin an interaction ( Rubric)

IPR (guidelines)

You will be rotating off your usual medical clinical unit on an assigned Monday. You will NOT go to the facility the evening before to get an assignment. Be certain you attend on your assigned day. You will need to wear your community uniform. We suggest you bring a sweater (and leave valuables at home). There are no lockers or locked area for belongings, so leave whatever you have locked and hidden in the car. If you are bringing your lunch, please know there is no refrigeration available, so pack foods accordingly. You are not permitted to leave hospital grounds during the lunch hour. There is a small cafeteria that takes cash only; there is no debit /credit /ATM machine.

For safety purposes, when on mental health units, no cell phones, pagers blackberry or other mobile communication devices may be taken on the clinical units by students. If you are experiencing an urgent need to have access to your phone/pager/mobile device,(such as a critically ill hospitalized parent or sick child in daycare) please ask your clinical instructor to carry it for you. You will be alerted if it begins to vibrate. Mobile devices can only be used outside the building, in your car and during break times.

Bring your blank interpersonal process recording and the rubric for starting interactions. These can be found on Ms Fickley’s faculty front door.

1.Be on time…..We will begin promptly at 7:00 am. Allow for traffic if you are using I-4. Find directions on map quest if you are not certain of the location. The destination address is: 434 W. Kennedy Blvd,Orlando. It is near the community of Eatonville. There are two Lakeside locations- be certain you arrive at the location on W. Kennedy. Allow time for traffic snarls and accidents! Directions are posted ffrom West campus on the front door.

Park in the large lot and go to the side door to the left of the parking lot as you look at the building. There is a car port canopy and on the canopy is the word ENTRANCE.

We will meet you in the lobby on the first day and take you to our conference room. We will leave the lobby at 7:05 AM, so PLEASE be on time!

If you must be absent from clinical, or are caught in traffic, please beep Ms Biggars, between 7AM-7:15AM to let your instructor know.If you call instructors outside of that time frame, please know your call may not be returned immediately, but will be returned when safe to do so. We will not go into the nurse’s station to use the phone, when students are on the unit.

All clinical absences must be made up by scheduling clinical time with the instructor at the end of the semester. Make up time is very limited.You can NOT make up clinical time without an instructor present.

2. Be prepared….Our clinical days will vary…however, here is a typical 8 hour day:

7-815AM Preconference, Orientation, HIPPA forms

815-830AM Break

8:30-9AM Conversing with patients

9-10AM Goal setting/ or exercise group (it is fun!)Be prepared to exercise, dance, and stretch!

10-12PM 1:1 interactions;perhaps a group activity

12PM-1PM Lunch/ Perhaps we will also combine lunch with conference

1PM-3:00PM Post Conference: IPR’s, Behaviors Observed, Psychiatric Terminology and sharing of the days experiences.

There is a small cafeteria, you can purchase light breakfast or lunch foods or snacks OR bring your own lunch to eat if desired. There is no refrigeration, so pack your lunch accordingly. You are not permitted to leave the property for lunch. They do not take debit cards- so bring cash if you plan to purchase your lunch.

3. Be prepared- Interactions with Patients

Even though you have had theory on developing relationships with patients, practiced in class role plays,and have had some experience in the assisted care living environment and perhaps on your NUR II unit, many find it difficult to begin an interaction with a mental health patient, for many reasons. In preparation for this, we suggest that you practice introductions in your professional and personal lives- the more comfortable you are introducing yourself to others, maintaining good body language and eye contact, the easier it will be for you. Please also review chapter 3 and 5 and 8 in Townsend. If you are particularly shy or fearful, please discuss it with your mental health instructor ASAP on your first clinical day.

When we enter the unit for the first time, we will take each of you individually to a patient and will role model an interaction with a patient, including initiation of the conversation, goal development, and ending participation in the discussion. You will include you in theconversation; it will evolve into a 3 way-interaction. When we believe that you are able to continue the interaction, we will excuse ourselves and you will continue conversing with the patient. When you have completed talking, you and your instructor will evaluate how you did, your biggest fear, most difficult point, etc.

Following our discussion, you are expected to begin an interaction with a second patient, without the assistance of your instructor. This will be your biggest hurdle of the morning… and we are certain you can do it! We are always on the unit, observing and if we see you needing assistance or faltering, we will jump right in to role model again. Ms Fickleyhas a rubric which we will review in our first Preconference, that breaks down the specific behaviors that you need to demonstrate and the criteria as to where you are performing. We will review where you think you have performed in our post conference. You can do it- and it will be fun! Refer to the Rubric posted on Mrs. Fickley’s Front Door.!

4. Be prepared….If there is a Baker Act hearing that you can observe, please sit quietly in the room…do not participate actively but observe everything! We will discuss what you see/hear/learn in our post conference.

5. Be prepared…. Remember the details of the dress codeas discussed in NUR I and dress for safety. Most importantly, closed toed shoes with a back that fits your foot.(No clogs, mules). Only post earrings, community uniforms. Based on patient populations, we may not permit sweaters on the unit. No lab coats.

6. We will work on your IPR prior to post conference. It is due, the Friday following your clinical experience. Use only patient initials for confidentiality. Make arrangements with your clinical instructor to email it or send them a copy. Keep a copy for your file!!

7. At the end of your clinical day, you will be given an evaluation form based on the rubric that you will sign and return to your mental health clinical instructor. This will be attached to your weekly evaluation. Remember to sign and date your evaluation which will be placed in your permanent file.

7.Mrs. Fickley’s office is in Building Two- 223 West campus, phone is 1883Ms Biggars office is in Building Two- room 222 West and phone is 1783. Because we teach in many class levels, it is always wise to make an appointment to be assured we will be available to meet with you. Additional office hours are always available upon request.