Pubdate: Mon, 01 May 2006
Source: American Journal of Nursing (US)
Section: Vol. 106(5), Pg 15
Copyright: 2006 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Contact:  http://www.ajnonline.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4157
Author: Jeffrey J. Drury, RN
Note: Official Journal of the American Nursing Assoc. Submissions 
must be typed, under 400 words, and include name, address, and phone 
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May be edited for length/clarity.

COMPASSION FOR THE MENTALLY ILL

Thank you for Ken Stanton's Treating Mental Illness in the ED 
(Viewpoint, December 2005). As many mental health care providers can 
attest, the substandard care and intolerance psychiatric patients 
receive are not confined to EDs.

Caregivers should remember that even patients who are homeless, drug 
addicted, personality disordered, malingering, or schizophrenic can 
tell their own stories. Their behavioral problems, irrespective of 
diagnosis, are often driven by fear, powerlessness, and low 
self-esteem-exacerbated by intolerance and indifference when they 
most need compassion. A little understanding in an initial 
interaction can mitigate behavioral problems, save time, and ensure 
the good nursing care that all patients deserve.

Jeffrey J. Drury, RN

Johnston, RI