Nursing students benefit from mental health experience

 
More holistic healthcare across all areas of nursing will result from nursing students at the University of Adelaide working in a mental-health setting during their first year of study.
 
The University of Adelaide’s School of Nursing is the only nursing school in the State to offer mental health training placements to first-year students.
 
This year, more than 100 nursing students – 24 of them in their first-year – have undertaken mental health work placements.

This project has been made possible with funding from Health Workforce Australia, an Australian Government initiative.
 
Speaking in the lead up to Mental Health Week (7-13 October), Associate Lecturer Briony Lia says students are already benefiting from this early exposure to mental health care.  "The incidence of mental illness and emotional problems in the community is increasing, so it’s important that we train our future nurses to be ready for these situations," Ms Lia says.
 
"This will have flow-on benefits in whatever area of nursing our students work in, and will give them a more holistic approach to nursing," she says.
 
First-year nursing student Candice Lee has today completed her placement at Glenside Hospital.  "Entering this placement I was aware of the stigma surrounding mental health," Candice says.  "The experience has given me a profound insight into mental health and the opportunity to gain first-hand experience into the treatment and care of mental health consumers.
 
"This experience will definitely be invaluable to have in any area of nursing.  For example, my communication skills were challenged in the mental health setting but the techniques I learned to overcome this will be transferrable to my further learning as well as my professional practice."