Eniola Oladokun RE: Discussion – Week 6 Case Study

Choosing a specialty within the MSN programs for me was an easy decision as I knew what I wanted to do from the beginning of my career.  Although, deciding on the specialty could be a critical part of my plan for success, and getting it right is important to avoid waste of time and money.  While I was in nursing school, I thought of FNP and psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner, but upon graduating from nursing school, I started my nursing career working full-time on a medical surgical floor and per diem in psychiatric mental health unit.  After a year I switched it up and started working full-time in psychiatry and per diem in medical surgical floor  and I come to love what I do on a daily basis on the psychiatric unit and this solidify my desire and intention to pursue a specialty in mental health nursing.

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I  got my psychiatric nursing experience working at  state facility within the adult and the forensic units but currently I work  with adolescent from ages 10 through 17 who suffer from psychiatric mental health disorder, which are not limited to ADHD, Bipolar disorder,  anxiety, depression, ODD and many other behavioral problems. The way the society views and treat patients with mental illness is quite different from any other physical health issues but sometimes it is difficult to understand how or why this affects us. Consequently, this unequal treatment of mental and physical illnesses leads to unequal results.  Working with this population and having friends with bipolar disorder, I have come to realize that mental health is as important as physical health, the two are inseparable.

Our society currently lacks education and understanding that mental disorders are comorbid with other chronic diseases that can add to the problems in caring for them. My goal is to educate, advocate and promote awareness to mental health disorders in our community, making sure that mental health services are available in the rural areas with focus on all age groups irrespective of their socioeconomic status. Eniola Oladokun RE: Discussion – Week 6 Case Study

Currently I am a member of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association (APNA) and the organization supports over 13,000 psychiatric mental health nurses at all levels of education who works in a variety of setting including inpatient, outpatient, research, education, administration, clinical, private practice, military and forensic. The APNA “is committed to the specialty practice of psychiatric-mental health nursing, health, wellness and recovery promotion through identification of mental health issues, prevention of mental health problems and the care and treatment of persons with psychiatric disorders” (American Psychiatric Nurses Association, n.d.).

You can become a member by filling out an online application or by mailing the application to the organization.  The organization has five different types of memberships: a regular membership, an affiliate membership, an international membership, retired membership, a student membership. The membership fees vary for the above-mentioned membership types and some requires for you to provide proof of identification for a reduced membership fee.

Reference

American Psychiatric Nurses Association. (n.d.). Welcome from the American Psychiatric Nurses Association! (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.apna.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3334

Walden University. (n.d.). Master of Science in Nursing (MSN). Retrieved April 26, 2020,  from https://www.waldenu.edu/online-masters-programs/master-of-science-in-nursing

Greggs-McQuilkin, D. (2005). Why join a professional nursing organization. Retrieved from

Eniola Oladokun RE: Discussion – Week 6 Case Study