Psychiatric mental health nurse practitioners (PMHNPs) are a group of behavioral health professionals who have been registered and authorized to provide mental health care to individuals, families, and communities. They contribute to the advancement of behavioral health in various ways. To be able to perform their roles effectively as mental health care providers, PMHNPs need to obtain relevant training, be able to develop strong therapeutic relationships with patients and their families, and implement evidence-based therapeutic interventions to address clients’ problems (reference). Today’s PMHNPs are expected to understand their roles, the reasons for becoming PMHNPs, how they can serve to address patients’ and populations’ needs, and the career outlook of the role.
Roles of a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner
PMHNPs play a crucial role in increasing mental health care access to patients and their families across the life span. They also help to strengthen the health systems in their states to enable them to meet the health demands of underserved communities (reference). According to (reference), an important role of a PMHNP is to partner with individuals and their families who are suffering from mental health problems to enable them to achieve recovery goals. Their daily routine in a healthcare facility entails conducting intake screening and evaluating patients for mental health problems. PMHNPs also teach self-care activities, health promotion, and maintenance to patients, their families, and the community (American Psychiatric Nurses Association, 2021). Like other nurse practitioners, PMHNPs must utilize evidence-based practice when working with their patients.
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Their role is to administer evidence-based mental health interventions to stabilize their clients and enable them to achieve improved health and well-being. They also engage in the rehabilitation of patient with severe behavioral problems. According to (reference), coordinated care and interdisciplinary team collaboration helps to prevent duplicative care and ensure that patients receive person-centered care that adequately addresses their needs at the individual level. PMHNPs engage in coordinated care and work with interdisciplinary teams to help individuals and families attain recovery goals.