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The Design of a New Psychiatric Hospital

Introduction

A psychiatric hospital is among the most necessary facilities in a city. Life challenges and different socio-economic conditions significantly alter peoples living conditions, exposing them to various psychiatric disorders. The proposed hospital will solve the considerably high need for a mental facility in Las Vegas. Design, staffing, and maintenance are vital elements that need to be observed in the hospital. Regardless of the mental condition, the practitioners should be guided by the primary goal of ensuring patient recovery and wellness. Halter (2022) unravels the foundations of mental health, showing how the efficacy of psychiatric hospitals depends on the quality of care. Notably, the proposed facility should bridge the gap between mental health patients needs and available services. This proposal highlights the need for a psychiatric hospital, outlines the impact of design features on safety, and describes various roles to be played by staff in the facility.

Need for New Psychiatric Hospital in Las Vegas

A new psychiatric hospital is an urgent structure that needs to be established in Las Vegas. One of the reasons is that many medical facilities are experiencing overcrowding, causing most emergency rooms to be diverted. Halley (2019) says that due to the high number of patients in the emergency departments, hospitals are unable to admit any more patients. The second reason is to prevent homelessness of the mentally challenged, who opt to create homes out on the streets.

The naked city is a municipal area in Las Vegas that has reported a high rate of mental issues. According to Halley (2019), the area has reported a great population of homeless mentally disabled people. There have been occasional crime reports where mental health patients become violent due to insufficient medical care or negligence on the side of nurses. Therefore, this becomes the best location to establish a psychiatric facility.

The residents of Naked city may develop anxiety when the institution is being constructed due to fear that it might not reduce the high crime rates in the area. They may also worry that the patients might escape from the hospital and attack community members. However, there are several ways to decrease these anxieties and negativities. One is by constructing a mental health facility with safety designs that would contain the patients. The second way is by educating the community about mental health and how to live with the victims to avoid recurring mental disorders (Halter, 2022). The third way would be engaging the mentally ill people in community activities that would help them feel accepted, facilitating recovery and preventing additional problems.

Safety Features Designed into the Psychiatric Hospital

Risk management in a psychiatric hospital is a critical element that entails physical and psychological security. Halter (2022) asserts that safety in psychiatric hospitals is not only a goal but the highest priority. Locked unit doors and open fishbowls are some of the vital features integrated into the psychiatric hospital design. Locking the units prevents unauthorized access and minimizes violence. Open fishbowls improve sightlines, enabling nurses to better observe patients in the hospital units.

Psychiatric hospital design should be well-planned, considering that patients with depressive symptoms and suicidal thoughts may harm themselves within the patient rooms. The design of a mental health facility has critical value as it influences a patients healing process. In this regard, patient rooms can be designed with two main features for safety: security glazing applied on the inside of exterior walls and tamper-resistant fasteners. These features minimize the probability of patients escaping or harming themselves in their rooms.

Populations to be Served at the Psychiatric Hospital

A psychiatric hospital serves the entire community, with different population groups having various needs and approaches. In the proposed psychiatric hospital, three main population groups will be served: young adults (18-25 years), middle-aged adults (26-60 years), and older adults (61 years and above). Categorizing the patients in these categories fosters a population-based approach, which has proved to be more effective in psychiatric care, according to Purtle et al. (2020), mental diagnoses differ among the age groups, thereby necessitating appropriate age-focused approaches.

Young adults face several social and economic conditions that affect their mental health. Depression and anxiety are the main mental diagnoses associated with older adolescents in the range of 18-25 years (Halter, 2022). Irritability and mood swings are some of the visible signs of a depressive disorder, as highlighted by Purtle et al. (2020). Young adults suffering from anxiety may experience panic and post-traumatic stress disorders.

In-patient Psychiatric Services

Designing the psychiatric hospital to include specialty units ensures that the specific needs of various patient groups are addressed. The proposed mental health facility will have two main specialty units: eating disorders and substance abuse units. These units serve a majority of the patients, more specifically, young adults (Purtle et al., 2020). Highly qualified personnel will be employed within these units to increase the quality of care.

Eating disorders are among the most prevalent mental issues affecting teenagers and young adults. Cognitive therapy and antidepressants are some of the best treatment options that would be offered in the eating disorders specialty unit (Halter, 2022). Behavior therapy and detoxification may be used to assist psychiatric patients suffering from substance abuse disorders (Halter, 2022). Each of these treatment options should be carefully evaluated for efficacy.

Outpatient Psychiatric Services

After treatment, psychiatric doctors should ensure that their patients maintain healthy lives. According to Halter (2022), giving outpatient appointments provides a framework for further evaluation and assistance. For instance, doctors can evaluate the extent to which medication side effects affect patients. In cases of severe side effects, the medication prescribed can be changed. In addition, medical appointments foster medication adherence, thereby facilitating full recovery.

Nurses represent the largest proportion of workers in psychiatric care. The outpatient nurse plays a central role in facilitating patient wellness that goes beyond medical treatment. According to Ameel et al. (2019), nurses responsibilities include administering medication according to patients needs, offering expert advice on healthy habits, and follow-up. In addition, nurses monitor patients progress and provide feedback or give referrals for specialized care.

Psychiatric Emergency/Crisis Services

Over the years, the number of patients in need of psychiatric emergency services has grown significantly, requiring hospitals to provide advanced care with well-equipped emergency areas. The rationale for emergency services stems from the fact that some individuals suffer from mental illnesses that cause immediate reactions ranging from mild to violent (Halter, 2022). Nurses offer the first line of care to patients and offer stabilizing treatments. Patients who show signs of aggression after receiving stabilizing medication, such as those with a major depressive disorder, should be admitted.

Mental health disorders such as depression and anxiety contribute to suicidal thoughts among patients. Sometimes, patients need to talk to someone they can trust and seek assistance that may avert their suicidal motives (Halter, 2022). Therefore, having a toll-free suicide prevention hotline at the hospital would minimize suicide-related deaths. In some cases, fellow patients may notice that someone may be planning to commit suicide, at which point they call for help, saving lives.

Psychiatric Treatments for Mental Illness

Psychiatric nurses are the first line of care in every medical setting. Bipolar disorder is one of the common mental illnesses that require a nurses intervention (Halter, 2022). In this case, the nurse offers mood stabilizers depending on whether the patient suffers from mania or hypomania. In addition, the family nurse practitioner working at the psychiatric hospital may offer family-focused therapy to patients and their families, helping them to cope with psychiatric disorders and maintain family relationships.

In addition to psychiatric nurses, other staff plays crucial roles in facilitating patient recovery. First, occupational therapists offer mental health treatment by helping patients to develop self-regulation techniques to enable them to resume normal daily activities (Brown et al., 2019). They may establish separate sessions for patient groups within the in-patient facility wherein they guide patients on life skills. Second, recreational therapists facilitate patients mental health by identifying patient-specific needs and tailoring healthy activities to address those requirements. Recreational therapists roles in the inpatient facility entail coordinating leisure activities and fitness sessions to improve patients health.

Multidisciplinary Treatment Team

Psychiatrists serve a critical purpose in mental health facilities. According to Halter (2022), they diagnose and treat psychiatric conditions affecting all patients within the hospital. After diagnosis, Psychiatrists seek to terminate and prevent the recurrence of mental disorders in three main dimensions: cognitive, behavioral, and emotional. As specialists, psychiatrists assess the extent to which an individual needs care and recommend the best treatment options, working in collaboration with psychiatric nurses. Within the in-patient facilities, nurses ensure that patients follow the routines prescribed and take medication as required by the doctors. They also monitor the patients progress and implement better methods. In essence, nurses report any changes to the doctors in charge and offer emergency services whenever the need arises.

Psychiatric Nursing Staffing

The optimal nurse-patient ratio is crucial for quality healthcare. According to Halley (2019), psychiatric hospitals in Las Vegas are understaffed and overcrowded, reflecting the need to re-evaluate the ratio. In the proposed hospital, the nurse-patient ratio will be maintained at 1:2. This ratio is optimal as it ensures that nurses can adequately address the needs of their patients who may have different levels of aggression. Halter (2022) highlights the need for maintaining a good nurse-patient ratio to ensure the well-being of both nurses and patients. Therefore, a nurse should be assigned to a minimum number of patients for effective treatment and follow-up.

Conclusion

In conclusion, a psychiatric hospital is highly needed in Las Vegas, following the states rising prevalence of mental health disorders. The proposed facility will offer in-patient and outpatient services to the residents of Naked city. Since the population will be comprised of young adults, middle-aged and older adults, nurses will need to develop population-focused approaches to tailor the treatment options to each group. Nurses, psychiatrists, and therapists will work together to ensure that safety is maintained in the hospital units and within the patient rooms.

References

Ameel, M., Kontio, R., & Välimäki, M. (2019). Interventions delivered by nurses in adult outpatient psychiatric care: An integrative review. Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing, 26(9-10), 301-322. Web.

Brown, C., Stoffel, V. C., & Munoz, J. (2019). Occupational therapy in mental health: A vision for participation. FA Davis.

Halley, M. (2019). Evidence-Based Practice Guide and Workflows: Improving Hospital Throughput and Reducing Emergency Department Overcrowding. UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones, 3607. Web.

Halter, M.J. (2022). Varcarolis foundations of psychiatric-mental health nursing: A clinical approach (9th ed.). Elsevier.

Purtle, J., Nelson, K., Counts, N., & Yudell, M. (2020). Population-based approaches to mental health: history, strategies, and evidence. Annual Review of Public Health, 41(1), 201-221. Web.

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