This fieldwork block has been a real eye-opener into the world of mental illness. Before this block my only experience of psychiatric illnesses were with intellectual disability and dementia. It was therefore extremely necessary for me to experience a wider range of mental illness before fourth year. I am extremely grateful for my opportunity and have tried to make the most of my experience at this acute hospital.
I have learnt the importance of finalizing the problem list as soon as possible, from the most important to the least important. In an acute hospital, patients are discharged readily and it is vital that the relapse prevention subprogramme is completed, to prevent future relapses, if it is necessary. I have therefore learnt that assessment findings are the priority, rather than a swift start to treatment. Information from the file or collateral information (Especially when dealing with manipulative schizophrenic patients) could completely change your treatment mindset.
I have also learnt how a person’s mental health can change over time. When the demands placed on a person exceed their resources and coping abilities, their mental health can be impacted. This is especially true for patient’s who lose their support system. For example, my patient’s father was a doctor. When he looked after my schizoaffective patient by ensuring she took medication, checking on her and stabilizing her moods, she maintained a job for 30 years. As soon as he passed on, she relapsed multiple times. Later, when her husband died she now only had the responsibility of cooking for herself and therefore became anorexic. Her depression after this death caused such a poor self-esteem and she relapsed multiple times again after that incident. Critical life events impact majorly on a person suffering from a psychiatric illness and this is a major reason why support systems are so important.
I have had to adjust to the abstract nature of intervention in psychiatry, compared to physical. I've developed myself with the psychiatry intervention needs, with experience. However, I am still learning to adapt each activity to completely suit the client’s needs. I felt as though I have managed to create subprogrammes which genuinely suit my clients rather than only specifically suiting their diagnosis, in comparison to midterms.
I have learnt more about how to be empathetic and develop a therapeutic relationship with a psychiatric patient. I have also had emotional moments where I’ve seen progression in patients through group therapy or casual day. These moments have opened my eyes to not only viewing these clients as patients, but as people. People with a life prior to their diagnosis and people with real emotions and feelings. I love how as OT’s we can embrace individual’s differences and allow them to use these differences to enjoy their lives to the fullest.
This to me is why I am so incredibly passionate about this degree. I told my career counsellor in Grade 11 that I wanted to pursue a career that allows me to help people. Had I not said those words to her, I could be on a completely different path right now. I had no idea what OT was and trusted her as she responded to me, “why don’t we look into occupational therapy”. My passion for this degree continues to grow day by day, as a I learn more in each block.
References:
NDC. (2018). Learn about Mental Health. Retrieved on the 23rd of September 2019 from https://www.cdc.gov/mentalhealth/learn/index.htm
Soeker, M.S. (2014). Occupational therapy students’ perceptions of the challenges they experience in adapting to a psychiatric fieldwork placement. Education Research Journal Vol. 4(6): 65-73
Islam, MJ. (2014). Experiences of occupational therapy students in the first fieldwork education: a qualitative study. Retrieved on the 23rd of September 2019 from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4301239/
The image was retrieved from Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.nz/explore/social-work/
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