Clinical Day Reflection

My first clinical day was very interesting. I enjoyed it overall but I was definitely apprehensive when we first entered the unit. Prior to my first clinical day, I had no idea of what I was going to encounter. I was somewhat nervous but I also felt intrigued because I have heard of the different environment mental health facilities have. I didn't necessarily have any expectations but it was very easy to overthink their patients and any potential altercations. I think this is because of the things that we are taught to avoid escalations. Although this doesn't necessarily mean the patients will harm us, it was hard to put that in the back of our minds and not think the worst. I got to see various patients with differing mental health disorders and was very interested in their manifestations as well. It was very interesting to actually see these patients exhibit their symptoms, even when they were just speaking in therapy. I enjoyed seeing the collaboration between the different healthcare providers as well. …show more content…
I believe that this was an aspect of their therapeutic milieu. In addition to the lack of dress code, the patients are all encouraged to eat breakfast together and meet in group therapy an hour after breakfast to facilitate socialization. I enjoyed this because I feel that this is another aspect of the therapeutic milieu. Each patient has the opportunity to participate in these interactions led by social workers. Kaiser's mental health facility also provides a safe holding environment due to the configuration of the nurse’s station in relation to the patient’s rooms and socialization rooms. Overall, it was a very good first clinical experience related to mental health because I had great nurses and a great