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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Can any nurses give me some advice please?

23 replies

PashunFroot · 20/06/2022 20:22

I have an interview next week for mental health nursing Msc.

I was just wondering if you could help me with what sort of questions I can expect, and I really want to avoid any cliche answers to “why do you want to be a nurse?”

what would make someone stand out?
also if any mental health nurses could share what it’s like that would be ace! It’s the pre reg course so I’ll be starting in year 2.

Cheers!

OP posts:
DontKeepTheFaith · 20/06/2022 20:33

Good luck with your interview. It’s been a very long time since I did my nurse training so can’t help with interview questions but can certainly give you some idea of what it is like.

I’m more than 20 years qualified, all inpatient care. The job has become a lot more challenging, more expected by less staff and much more paperwork. Not enough time for patients IMO.

The shifts are long, unsocial, breaks are a rare thing and the workload is immense. If I had my time again I would consider OT where the workload is much more manageable and overall much less responsibility for similar banding pay.

I’m a ward manager now, I consider it to be nursings shittiest job🤣 All the responsibility, not enough clinical care and not enough pay. You have demands dumped on your from those above and below constantly. I earn £1000 a year more than I did as a charge nurse but have so much more responsibility and with the loss of enhancements, take home no more.

I feel stuck because of the pay which would be quite good expect for all the responsibility I shoulder and if I could find a way out, I would. Have a vague 5 year plan to leave when dc are through university.

That’s an honest view of mental health nursing. Don’t want to put anyone off but it is really a brutal profession. You would get your pick of jobs though because there simply aren’t enough nurses around.

PashunFroot · 20/06/2022 20:38

Would you recommend community over inpatient? I’d like to go into perinatal nursing. I have two young children though so don’t want to be working crazy hours. Which one dk you think would be best?

OP posts:
JennieTheZebra · 20/06/2022 20:45

I’m a student MH nurse so I’ve done the interviews fairly recently. More than anything, they’re going to ask: why MH? Adult nursing is far more common and the more usual choice for people, especially if retraining. MH nursing is very much a vocation. Tbh not many people even know what a MH nurse does! If you have a really solid answer for why you picked MH in particular you’ll be fine. Oh and know your 6 Cs 😊

PashunFroot · 20/06/2022 21:07

Thankyou. I’m sure it will be ok, I know they’re so desperate for nurses atm I would probably need to really fuck it up to not get in the course!

i just rarely see anyone post anything positive about it 😅

OP posts:
JennieTheZebra · 20/06/2022 21:11

Oh I love it. I think it’s the best job in the world, being able to meet people in their struggles and help them be the best that they can be; it’s such a privilege. I’d do it for free ❤️

Mandatorymongoose · 20/06/2022 21:14

Community and inpatient both have their own joys and challenges.

Inpatient is usually shifts and 24 hour service which can be a bit of a work life balance nightmare depending on staffing levels, who does your rota and what else you are juggling. But the upside is there is always someone around to ask if you are unsure, an HCA, another nurse, a manager, someone who will be physically not far away you can talk things through with or who can stand next to you if you feel like things are a bit risky or swap with you maybe if the situation calls for it. The wards are often busy and breaks can be hard to prioritise but having a good team is great, when you go home you know someone else is looking after everyone, although you might still worry what tomorrow will bring.

Community is more often 9-5, often you can manage your own diary a bit so plan your day the way your prefer as long as you fit everything in (some things like meetings don't move). You hold your own caseload and are responsible for your own clients building relationships with them. It can be really lovely going for a coffee with a client and taking the time to have a chat 1:1. You don't get the same 1:1 time in the wards. The downside is you carry a lot of risk. While there is a team / duty worker etc. you are often depending on your client to pick up the phone and seek help if things get bad or for you to recognise signs of things getting worse before they need to. You don't have anyone really to hand over to at the end of shift (maybe forwarn crisis they might get a call but it's not that same as knowing someone has staff there all night)it can be a worry and getting the balance between letting someone get on with their life, accepting that some symptoms happen and keeping people safe is a difficult thing (have to consider capacity too as well as mental health). Often you wear a lot of hats in community, part nurse, part social worker, part advocate etc.

There are some jobs, things like home based treatment teams which are a bit in the middle and some jobs that fit in really different roles (therapy or mental health navigators, admiral nurses, psych liaison, transition of care nurses) mental health nursing is fabulous and varied (and at times stressful and infuriating- systems not people). There is too much paperwork and not enough staff in all settings but that is the way of the world!

Good luck with the interview and whatever path you take.

DontKeepTheFaith · 20/06/2022 21:22

PashunFroot · 20/06/2022 20:38

Would you recommend community over inpatient? I’d like to go into perinatal nursing. I have two young children though so don’t want to be working crazy hours. Which one dk you think would be best?

Community nursing has its own challenges. Inpatient provides you with a robust support network and you can ‘hand over’ responsibility at the end of a shift which is not the same in the community. You will have lots of experiences through your training which will give you a better idea of what you enjoy and you might end up considering something different to what you imagined.

iolaus · 20/06/2022 21:53

I'm not mental health (I'm actually a midwife) but I found the difference between working in and working on community is that community is more mentally draining - you can't turn off at the end of the shift - you worry about your caseload but you really get to know them, and they know you
Which massively helps with any mental health aspects - they can't mask as well when you are there going 'well this isn't the normal you'. In patient care is more physically tiring.

You will be asked why that branch and not general adult nursing

My answer was because there was something in me that told me this was the right thing to do, and that feeling was just stronger and stronger and if they told me no then I'd be back applying the year afterwards because this is what I was meant to do

In all honesty I'd run from perinatal (at least locally in the fashion it is now) it is badly needed but they don't accept people not in crisis so a lot of what SHOULD be done by the perinatal team is picked up by the community midwife - however you may have a good team - and a good perinatal mental health team is a wonderful thing

FlissyPaps · 20/06/2022 22:09

I work for a mental health NHS trust (admin). But I talk a lot to the nurses, doctors and psychiatrists as part of my job.

Sounds cliche but what everyone has in common is that they care for others. Working in mental health is incredibly challenging. Staff working in inpatient units are often attacked, abused and deal with lots of grief from really unwell patients. But at the same time, it’s also very rewarding.

You’ve got to be resilient in nature but also stay human. You can’t be a robot working in mental health. Having experience of your own mental health struggles and empathy for others is what makes a great nurse. A few ex-patients of our trust have gone on to work in the sector.

Just absolutely 100% be yourself in the interview. And be honest why you want to do the course and where you see yourself working afterwards.

Good luck, I am sure you will do absolutely fine💐

SaggyBlinders · 20/06/2022 22:19

I was just wondering if you could help me with what sort of questions I can expect, and I really want to avoid any cliche answers to “why do you want to be a nurse?”

They will probably definitely ask you why you want to be a mental health nurse, so I would have an answer ready. I applied for adult nursing, and pretty much all of my experience was related to children with mental health issues and learning disabilities, so I remember them asking me why adult nursing.

If you are applying for a pre registration masters, what transferable skills have you gained from your previous work experience that are relevant for nursing?

Tell us about something that you have seen about nursing in the news recently? I answered with something about the Francis report, and compassion fatigue.

I can't remember anything else about my interview, too long ago!

CanaryShoulderedThorn · 20/06/2022 23:34

Expect to be asked to explain what you understand about the role of a mental health nurse. They want to know that you have properly researched every aspect of the role.

They might ask you how you deal with stress.
What experience you have of working with people generally and of mental heath issues.

What are the most important qualities you would need as a MH nurse?
Why do you want yo do this when you can earn so much more in other fields, (like tech!).

PashunFroot · 21/06/2022 21:03

Thankyou everyone, lots to think about!

still not 100% sure if I should do this or just work part time until the baby is at school.

OP posts:
daffodilandtulip · 21/06/2022 21:28

If you're not 100% sure, it's not worth it. You work almost full time during placements, with assignments on top. That's a lot with a young child (I mean lots of people do it, so it's possible, but if you're not sure...)
Mental health nursing is so underfunded that a lot of the very caring professionals are just burnt out, and it can feel a very toxic environment.
Admission criteria is so high that the people you see on the wards are very unwell, and it's a very high stress environment as a result. Similarly, this means that in the community, you are looking after very unwell people and taking massive risks all the time.

PashunFroot · 21/06/2022 21:38

I think I’m going to do the interview just to see if I get accepted then think from there. I do want to do it, I think I’m just a bit scared!

OP posts:
Lex345 · 21/06/2022 21:54

I qualified in 2015 (adult nursing) and have since left the profession due to stresses put on me in the pandemic. I worked in NHS and social care, later as a registered manager.

Nursing is the best job in the world. But-and I cannot stress this enough-make sure you 100% look after yourself, get a good work life balance and learn to say No-to overtime, to taking on too much and to being treated like a number.

No one else will do this for you. You have to be strict with yourself and stick up for yourself-you matter too!

Other than that, I am sure you will love the course and it is such a varied profession, I am sure you will find a "lane" you love.

Interview questions-what makes a good nurse/what values you have/what makes you think you would be a good nurse/what would you do if (these are often around basic safeguarding/whistleblowing scenarios)

They might throw in some topical questions (look for recent news stories aboht medical ethics/pandemic/infection control). You might get a media or confidentiality based question.

Dazzledee · 21/06/2022 22:05

DontKeepTheFaith · 20/06/2022 20:33

Good luck with your interview. It’s been a very long time since I did my nurse training so can’t help with interview questions but can certainly give you some idea of what it is like.

I’m more than 20 years qualified, all inpatient care. The job has become a lot more challenging, more expected by less staff and much more paperwork. Not enough time for patients IMO.

The shifts are long, unsocial, breaks are a rare thing and the workload is immense. If I had my time again I would consider OT where the workload is much more manageable and overall much less responsibility for similar banding pay.

I’m a ward manager now, I consider it to be nursings shittiest job🤣 All the responsibility, not enough clinical care and not enough pay. You have demands dumped on your from those above and below constantly. I earn £1000 a year more than I did as a charge nurse but have so much more responsibility and with the loss of enhancements, take home no more.

I feel stuck because of the pay which would be quite good expect for all the responsibility I shoulder and if I could find a way out, I would. Have a vague 5 year plan to leave when dc are through university.

That’s an honest view of mental health nursing. Don’t want to put anyone off but it is really a brutal profession. You would get your pick of jobs though because there simply aren’t enough nurses around.

Eek...as an OT I'm not sure how to reply to this! We definitely have different demands than our nursing colleagues however not less responsibility nor are the work demands less. Some of the decisions I have to make on a daily basis are massive - as well as managing a team of 55 members of therapy staff.
I always say if I were to retrain I would go into nursing instead of OT - far more opportunities than OT!

OP, I wish you luck with whatever you decide to do!

FlimsySteve · 21/06/2022 22:44

@Dazzledee

Some of the decisions I have to make on a daily basis are massive - as well as managing a team of 55 members of therapy staff.

What band are you?

Dazzledee · 21/06/2022 22:48

I'm a 7. All the AHP team leaders in my health board are 7's which doesn't reflect the work we have to do.

DontKeepTheFaith · 22/06/2022 18:31

Dazzledee · 21/06/2022 22:05

Eek...as an OT I'm not sure how to reply to this! We definitely have different demands than our nursing colleagues however not less responsibility nor are the work demands less. Some of the decisions I have to make on a daily basis are massive - as well as managing a team of 55 members of therapy staff.
I always say if I were to retrain I would go into nursing instead of OT - far more opportunities than OT!

OP, I wish you luck with whatever you decide to do!

Well I can only comment based on my own experience and whilst our OT’s are responsible for their assessments and interventions, they don’t share the caseload responsibility, they aren’t so involved in mental health related risk management and they are not responsible for care planning in the way nurses are. Everything stops with the nursing staff and we (me as manager) are culpable for what goes wrong and what we do well. I can genuinely say our OT’s have much less overall responsibility. Of course that will be different in other areas but that’s the model for my Trust. I’m not saying the role isn’t important, our OT’s are awesome but they have protected time as they are always supernumerary to the core nursing team and that’s a tremendous advantage over our nursing staff.

muddyboots · 22/06/2022 19:38

I think it's the best job in the world too! Most days I look forward to going into work and everyday there is real joy and love and sadness. (Adult emergency care)

I agree with the other comments about being clear on why MH nursing is for you. Good luck!

UndertheCedartree · 22/06/2022 20:26

Do you know how many apply for how many places? When I trained there was 10 people for each place so you wouldn't get in without a very good interview. Are you doing a Maths & English test? It is quite basic GCSE level but a lot of questions in a short time to see how you work under pressure. Many people failed these tests so I'd make sure you are confident. And I agree you need to go into this with your eyes wide open and a lot of commitment. You will be full time at Uni or full time on placement doing 12 hour shifts, nights, weekends and bank holidays. On top of this you will be learning your skills, studying for exams and doing assignments. It is not for the faint hearted!

Mandatorymongoose · 23/06/2022 00:16

Just wandering back to this thread to say that I actually had a baby at the end of my first year (finished my final placement 2 weeks before he was due, waddling round a rehab getting slightly worried looks if breathed too heavily- apparently they didn't fancy having him delivered in the clinic for some reason). I took a year out so did 2nd / 3rd year with a 1/2 year old. I just want you to know it absolutely is doable! I did have good support from my DH though and fortunately his rota has always been pretty flexible. I would not pretend it was easy but with help and unreasonable amounts of caffeine I did get there.

Good luck!

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