Congratulations to Nicole who graduated from the Psychiatric Nursing Program! We thank her for her hard work on the blog and wish her the best of luck in her new career. Questions and comments will now be disabled. Please watch out for a new Psychiatric Nursing Student Blogger in the near future!
Hello Everyone,
Well, school has finally come to an end; I am officially a Psychiatric Nurse (not registered… yet!). It is exciting and nerve-racking all at once. The hard work and effort has paid off, and I am still in amazement of this career I’ve chosen to pursue.
My preceptorship experience in community mental health ended in August, and I truly miss it. The rapports I created with colleagues and clients were incredible, and definitely solidified my commitment to this line of work. I am now a nurse who feels confident in performing assessments, charting, giving injections, and acting as a professional member of a healthcare team. I certainly don’t know everything; there isn’t a single new nurse who does. Experience is a huge part of what shapes our knowledge, and that only comes with time. An influential nurse in my community mental health experience gave me a great piece of advice. He said: Don’t ever be afraid to ask for help. You’re a new nurse; no one should expect you to know everything. We’re a team – remember you’re never alone. As I enter the workforce, I am taking this advice with me!!
Throughout my practicum experiences (and by now I have had a lot of them!), I have learned that the specifics of Psychiatry truly fascinate me. The assessments we perform and the ways in which we interact with clients really differ from medical nursing. I love medical sciences, and one day might like to pursue that avenue in some way, but for now, I have my sights set on Psych! For someone, like me, who has a passion for Psychiatry, becoming a Psychiatric Nurse is a great accomplishment that you won’t regret. The experience and learning opportunities that I know are ahead of me are bountiful, and I’m feeling very satisfied with the decision I made to take this educational opportunity.
My blogging days are running out, even though it feels like I just started! It has been so great to have this opportunity to share my experiences with all the blog readers. Currently, I am spending my time working and studying. Registration exams for my cohort are in October, so everyone is hitting the books and getting prepared! If any of you are curious of the specifics of the exam, check out the CRPNBC (College of Registered Psychiatric Nurses of BC) website and snoop around!
I am now an employed nurse, and it sure feels good to be making money for the hard work we nurses do! (Look up more information on working as a Psychiatric Nurse (not yet registered) with an interim license on the CRPNBC website!) Once I write and pass my registration exam, then I can call myself a RPN. And what comes after that? Well, I plan to work in this field for a while, do some travelling, and then I’m sure I’ll be itching to go back to school. My advice is to see every educational opportunity as positive; learning something new is never a waste!! Get started on planning your next educational endeavour… you won’t regret it!
