Psychiatric Unit Safety

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Safety is one of the most important aspects of nursing care. On a psychiatric inpatient unit safety is extremely important (Slemon, Jenkins, & Bungay, 2017). Patients on psychiatric units are more likely to become violent then patients on other inpatient units (Slemon, Jenkins, & Bungay, 2017). Nurses should be watching patients for anger and agitation. The earlier these emotions are treated the less likely there will be violence on the unit. It’s the nurse’s responsibility to be observing patients at all times to decide if a situation is escalating. Nurses have the responsibility of upholding safety for themselves, patients, other staff, and the community. Nurses can enforce nursing protocols to increase safety on the unit. Some nursing …show more content…

This includes one on one observation and monitoring for high risks patient, such as suicidal patients (Slemon, Jenkins, & Bungay, 2017). This observation can be intermittent or constant. Another close observation is fishbowl nursing stations (Slemon, Jenkins, & Bungay, 2017). Fishbowl nursing stations are ones that are locked, but are completely see through so the nurses can keep a close watch on all the patients. Using close observation has shown to decrease injuries on psychiatric units (Slemon, Jenkins, & Bungay, 2017). Nurses can watch patients closely to notice and deescalate situations if needed. If a situation can be controlled before a patient gets violent, there will be decreased injuries within the unit. Part of close observation is seclusion of patient. Seclusion is putting a patient in a safe, private room when they get violent (Slemon, Jenkins, & Bungay, 2017). Seclusion is used often in inpatient setting. Slemon, Jenkins, & Bungay (2017) found that about one in five patients report being secluded during their psychiatric inpatient stay. Secluding a patient during needed times helps other patients and workers feel safer on the unit (Slemon, Jenkins, & Bungay,

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