The ‘Five Year Forward View’ plan is all about the integration of mental, social and physical care skills for nursing jobs. Many among the community believe that if they are not trained generically for nursing jobs, this vision will remain hard to achieve.
No Support from the Mental Health Nurses
The mental health nurses have reacted adversely to this proposition. They are of the opinion that the idea of generic training for nursing jobs will diminish their already minor resources allocated for mental health.
These nurses believe that even in the current system of training, the mental health specialisation is on the sidelines. The number of mental health nursing academics is far lesser than the adult nursing academics.
It is known that the number of adult nursing lecturers in the universities is higher as well. Therefore, the mental health nurses believe that a generic training vision for nursing jobs will sideline this particular speciality even more.
The Current Mental Health Nursing Course
The mental health nursing course has already been changed to add more generic content. This is quite frustrating for the student of this particular course as it leaves them between two worlds.
It should be acknowledged that the adult and mental health nursing courses attract different types of students. A student of the mental health nursing course is usually older than that of the other. Many of them already have a psychology degree at the undergraduate level.
Preceptorship for Mental Health Nurses
Preceptorship is good in theory. However, there are so many services including mental health that are not being funded sufficiently. As a result, these areas also end up being overstretched. Some previous studies also indicate that nurses who even qualified for the mental health nursing jobs were left with insufficient equipment to actually work in the environment.
What is a Better Idea?
Some experts in the nursing community believe that instead of generic training nursing jobs, potential nurses should be offered a foundation year. This is similar to the practice of many universities that offer it to students who have not taken their degree subject at school or they need additional academic merit to be accepted for the course.
The Dilemma of Mental Health
Mental health remains a touchy issue. Apart from removing the stigma, it is necessary to ensure that appropriate help is available for those who seek it. There is a need for focus on increasing the number of mental health nursing academics for that purpose
While the idea of generic training for nurses seems beneficial, it should not be forgotten that areas underfunded like mental health nursing hold not be ignored. Perhaps, there can be additional support for this field or the nursing community can generate a better idea that benefits all equally.
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