Week 1 & 2 Flashcards
Define mental health
It is a state mental wellbeing that enables people to cope with the stressors of life, learn, work, and contribute to their community
Identify the recovery principles
- hope
- personal responsibility
- education
- self advocacy
- support
Define trauma informed care/practise
It is the recognition of the impact of trauma on a person. Providing care in a way that does not traumatise the individual.
- An approach to improving consumers’ experience and outcomes of mental health services
Identify the trauma informed care principles
- building trust
- respecting diversity
- safety
- choice (of care)
- empowerment of the consumer
- collaboration of all healthcare disciplines
What is the purpose of the mental health act?
Empowers people with a diagnosed mental illness by placing them at the centre of decision making regarding treatment and care
What is psychoeducation?
The process whereby the mental health nurse, consumer and family members engage in information sharing and education related to maintain health and wellbeing
Identify and explain the three compulsory orders:
- Assessment order (AO): duration of 24 hours; where the person appears to have a mental illness as the person appears to need immediate treatment to prevent clinical and physical deterioration
- Temporary treatment order (TTO): duration of 28 days; where the person has a mental illness as the person needs immediate treatment to prevent clinical deterioration and serious harm to other people
- Treatment order (TO): duration of 6 months (inpatient) or 12 months (community); the person has mental illness as the person needs immediate treatment to prevent clinical deterioration and serious harm
Define psychosis
It is a term to describe the collection of symptoms of impaired sense of reality.
- These common symptoms can be in the form of delusions, hallucinations; positive symptoms, negative symptoms or cognitive symptoms/impairment like disorganised thinking
Identify the key features of psychosis
- delusions
- hallucinations; both visual and auditory
- cognitive disturbances or thought disorders
What are delusions?
Fixed beliefs that are false, but which the individual holds to be true.
- they are held with absolute conviction
- they are not changeable by compelling counter argument or proof to the contrary
- the content of the delusions is impossible, implausible, bizarre or patently untrue
What are the different types of delusions?
- Delusions of reference: events aimed at person
- Grandiose delusions: person has unique significance
- Paranoid delusions: being harmed or watched e.g. belief that meds are poisonous
- Delusions of control: thoughts and actions being controlled
- Erotomanic: someone in love with them; requiring legal actions e.g restraining orders
What are hallucinations?
Perceptions (via the senses) in a conscious and awake state in the absence of external stimuli, which have qualities of real perception.
- hallucinations can occur in any sensory modality, for example visual, auditory, olfactory, gustatory, or tactile
What are the different types of hallucinations?
- Auditory hallucinations: most common, voices or commentary
- Visual hallucinations: flashes or colour or clean and identifiable objects
- Touch, smell or taste: less common
What is the difference between disorganised thinking and behaviour?
Disorganised thinking is indirectly observed through someone’s speech patterns whereas disorganised behaviour is directly observed.
Identify and explain the different speech patterns
- Poverty of thought content (alogia): “what colour is the couch”?
- Getting off topic: also known as tangential (going off on a tangent)
- Thought blocking: completely losing train of thought
- Word salad: words are put together with no sense or meaning
- Preservation: words or ideas are repeated
What are the causes of psychosis?
-Alcohol and certain illicit substances (with psychoactive properties); both during use and withdrawal
-Medical conditions such as brain tumors, brain diseases (parkinson’s, huntington’s disease), various forms of dementia
-Genetic predisposition
-Pre-existing mental illness (schizophrenia, depression, bi-polar, BPD, drug-induced psychosis- psychotic symptoms sometimes with acute and chronic brain conditions)
-Some prescription medication, such as steroids and stimulants
What are the symptoms of psychosis?
-hallucinations
-delusions
-confusion
-suicidal thoughts
-severe mood swings
-paranoia
-insomnia
Treatment available for psychosis
-the use of antipsychotic medication
-psychotherapeutic counselling approaches (CBT, ACT + family therapies)
-early intervention
-mental health service support
Define schizophrenia
It is a psychotic disorder; characterised by significant disturbances in thinking, emotions, and behaviour.
-It is often described in terms of positive, negative or cognitive symptoms.
What are the signs and symptoms of schizophrenia?
- Positive symptoms: hallucinations, delusions and disorganised speech and thoughts
- Negative symptoms: anhedonia, avolition and blunted affect
- Cognitive symptoms: memory issues, inability to process social cues and impaired sensory perception
Identify and explain the three stages of schizoprenia
- Prodrome: the early or emerging stage of schizophrenia. May notice emerging bizarre behaviours
- Active phase: the person may require treatment in the mental health acute unit to support the management and care of their acute symptoms
- Residual phase: “recovery stage”, the more intense symptoms begin to decrease, however the person more than likely still exhibits symptoms
