Psychiatric Nursing Course

Lesson 1 • Legal and Ethical Principles

Covers patient rights, informed consent, confidentiality, and involuntary treatment standards. Grounds ethical reasoning in daily psychiatric nursing decisions.

Lesson 2 • History and Evolution of Psychiatric Care

Traces psychiatric care from custodial institutions to community-based models. Provides context for understanding current nursing roles and reform movements.

Lesson 3 • Theoretical Models in Psychiatric Nursing

Examines psychodynamic, behavioral, and humanistic models applied in nursing. Links theory selection to patient assessment and care planning.

Lesson 1 • Establishing the Therapeutic Alliance

Explains trust-building, boundary setting, and professional use of self in psychiatric nursing. A strong alliance predicts better treatment engagement and outcomes.

Lesson 2 • Communication Across Diverse Populations

Addresses culturally responsive communication and adaptations for age, cognition, and language. Reduces disparities by tailoring approach to individual patient needs.

Lesson 3 • Core Therapeutic Communication Skills

Teaches active listening, reflection, clarification, and empathic responding. These skills form the behavioral foundation of every therapeutic interaction.

Lesson 1 • Risk Assessment and Safety Planning

Develops skills for evaluating suicide, self-harm, and violence risk. Translates risk level into actionable safety plans and escalation protocols.

Lesson 2 • Mental Status Examination

Covers all domains of the mental status exam including appearance, mood, cognition, and insight. Provides a standardized snapshot of current psychiatric functioning.

Lesson 3 • Biopsychosocial Formulation

Integrates biological, psychological, and social data into a coherent clinical formulation. Bridges assessment findings to individualized treatment planning.

Lesson 4 • Standardized Screening Tools

Introduces validated rating scales for depression, anxiety, psychosis, and cognitive impairment. Teaches correct administration, scoring, and clinical interpretation.

Lesson 1 • Personality and Neurodevelopmental Disorders

Reviews cluster A, B, and C personality disorders alongside ADHD and autism spectrum. Addresses stigma and nursing approach adjustments for these populations.

Lesson 2 • Substance Use and Co-occurring Disorders

Covers substance use disorder criteria, common substances, and dual-diagnosis presentations. Prepares nurses to screen and engage patients with co-occurring conditions.

Lesson 3 • Psychotic Disorders

Examines schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders including positive and negative symptoms. Addresses prodromal phases and long-term illness trajectories.

Lesson 4 • Mood Disorders

Covers major depressive disorder, bipolar spectrum, and persistent mood conditions. Links neurobiological and psychosocial mechanisms to clinical presentation.

Lesson 1 • Medication Administration and Patient Education

Applies the rights of medication administration to psychiatric settings and teaches patient psychoeducation. Addresses adherence barriers and long-acting injectable options.

Lesson 2 • Anxiolytics, Sedatives, and Hypnotics

Reviews benzodiazepines, buspirone, and non-benzodiazepine sleep agents with abuse potential considerations. Guides safe prescribing support and withdrawal management.

Lesson 3 • Antidepressants and Mood Stabilizers

Covers SSRIs, SNRIs, TCAs, MAOIs, and mood stabilizers including lithium and anticonvulsants. Links pharmacodynamics to expected therapeutic and adverse effects.

Lesson 1 • Nursing Care Planning in Psychiatry

Guides development of nursing diagnoses, measurable goals, and intervention selection. Connects the nursing process to psychiatric-specific patient outcomes.

Lesson 2 • Crisis Intervention and Stabilization

Provides a structured framework for psychiatric crisis assessment and immediate stabilization. Prepares nurses to act decisively in emergency psychiatric situations.

Lesson 3 • Milieu Therapy and Inpatient Management

Explains the therapeutic milieu concept and nursing responsibilities in structured inpatient environments. Covers group programming, safety monitoring, and unit culture.

Lesson 4 • Behavioral and Cognitive Nursing Interventions

Introduces behavioral activation, thought challenging, and relaxation techniques nurses can apply. Bridges evidence-based psychotherapy concepts to nursing practice scope.

Lesson 1 • Forensic and Correctional Psychiatric Nursing

Introduces mental health care in correctional and forensic settings including competency and insanity concepts. Addresses ethical tensions unique to custodial psychiatric environments.

Lesson 2 • Geriatric Psychiatric Nursing

Covers late-life depression, dementia, delirium, and polypharmacy risks in older adults. Addresses capacity assessment and end-of-life mental health considerations.

Lesson 3 • Perinatal Mental Health Nursing

Examines perinatal mood and anxiety disorders, psychosis, and medication safety in pregnancy. Prepares nurses to screen, support, and coordinate perinatal mental health care.

Lesson 1 • Family Education and Support

Equips nurses to deliver psychoeducation to families and engage them as partners in recovery. Addresses caregiver burden and family communication strategies.

Lesson 2 • Discharge Planning and Care Transitions

Teaches structured discharge planning including follow-up coordination, medication reconciliation, and crisis planning. Reduces readmission risk through proactive transition management.

Lesson 3 • Recovery-Oriented Care Principles

Defines recovery as a personal journey beyond symptom reduction, emphasizing hope and self-determination. Guides nurses to shift from paternalistic to collaborative care models.