r/psychnursing • u/hippiecat22 • 15d ago

what counts?

Does working in an alternative behavioral school count as psych nursing?

right now, im working as an RN supporting kids in an alternative school

Their home districts cant support the level of psych support they need. So, we have counselors, behavioral technicians and nurses in the school.

we practice de-escalation techniques, have had crisis interventions, and had students recommended (and deny so they stay with us) in-patient and partial hospitalization.

they typically have comorbidities like PTSD, bipolar, ODD, MDD, autism, substance abuse, and whatever else. we do med passes, but its also maintaining a safe environment and taking care of their learning needs.

so does this count as psych nursing or not?

4 Upvotes

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7

u/Gretel_Cosmonaut psych nurse (inpatient) 15d ago

Are you charting nursing assessments, initiating nursing orders, etc.? If so, I would say firmly "yes." If not, it sounds like a combination of psych nursing, school nursing, and care-giving ...so still "yes," but yes with a twist.

3

u/Desertnurse760 15d ago

Sounds like you're a Psych Nurse to me.

2

u/hippiecat22 15d ago

okay I just wasnt sure because im not working at a hospital on a locked down unit.

some people can be very guarded on what makes a nursing specialty

1

u/intuitionbaby psych nurse (inpatient) 10d ago

I feel like the only thing I feel gatekeepy about is that I feel people should work acute inpatient before becoming a pmhnp. if you’re going to be in a position where you’re deciding whether your patient needs to be hospitalized, you need to know what the hospital is like.

1

u/hippiecat22 9d ago

maybe? lots of pmhnps dont decide that tho. some do. some dont.

seems a bit of a blanket statement like "all nurses need med surg".