Did you know that Thorazine treats uncontrollable hiccups? Do you know how to manage treatment resistant depression? How about neuroleptic malignant syndrome? What are the current treatments for reactive attachment disorders? Where do you refer a child with autism? What are the current benefits to using acetylcholinesterase inhibitors to treatment the symptoms of dementia? Who would know the answers to these questions?
A psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner! (PMHNP)
· A psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner is educationally prepared at the master’s (and Doctorate of Nursing Practice) level to provide a full range of psychiatric services, including (but not limited to) assessment and diagnostic reasoning; implementing treatments, such as the prescribing of medications and implementation of individual, group and/or family psychotherapies.
· PMHNP competencies incorporate the health promotion, health protection, disease prevention and treatment focus of psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner practice. For more information, go to this site: http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Accreditation/psychiatricmentalhealthnursepractitionercopetencies/FINAL03.pdf
* In 2000, the first certification for PMHNP was offered by ANCC.
* In 2009, there are 96 out of 100 counties in North Carolina that are medically underserved areas (MUA) or health professional shortage areas (HPSA), and many counties still do not have physicians, psychiatrists or nurse practitioners that can manage the psychiatric and mental health needs of their communities.
* Since 2004, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill SON has prepared psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioners to provide services to two specific patient populations: Adult (ages 13+) and family (ages birth to late life).
* In 2009, there are 50 students in the SON MSN program in PMHN and approximately 20 will graduate in this academic year.
* In 2009, there are 51 certified PMHNPs in the state of NC.
* From 2010- 2015, the PMHN APA at UNC predicts there will be approximately 20 new UNC graduates per year (or 100 NEW grads by 2015) to help meet the mental health needs of thousands of citizens in the MUA and HPSA counties across North Carolina.
To learn more about the SON’s psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner program:
