Hannah Pearce

Hannah Pearce, Registered Nurse

On a typical day
There really is never a typical day at the unit. The Invercargill mental health unit provides acute care for all mental health presentations over the age of 16. So this means a variety of mental health disorders, ages, physical health issues, cognitive and physical capabilities and whanau support, all of which must be considered when providing holistic care.
The fundamentals of nursing care include building and maintaining a therapeutic relationship with service users;  assessing mental state and risk;  facilitating treatment and providing education about medications and disorders;  formulating treatment plans that reduce risk while promoting recovery and wellbeing all while monitoring physical health, and providing interventions and treatment when necessary. As a nurse here you need to be flexible, with your daily plan and also adjusting your approach for each individual and their personality, while considering how their presenting mental state may impact their participation in their treatment plan. Treatment plans are also developed alongside members of the treating team, always including a psychiatrist and key worker, but psychologists, social workers, occupational therapists, and house officers are available and able to provide their professional perspective. Whanau involvement is also imperative to understanding the person as a whole and what resources may be necessary for their ongoing recovery in the community. The environment on the ward  s always changing, with fluctuating acuity and risk. For this reason working at the mental health unit can be interesting and rewarding but also challenging.

One way I’ve made a difference as a nurse
I did a presentation about my nursing journey to new graduate nurses not too long ago and at the end of the presentation one of the new graduates commented that she had recalled me from her nursing placement and thanked me for being kind and welcoming. Being a nursing student is still fresh to me, having only graduated in 2017, and the acceptance and support, or lack of, by nursing staff during clinical placements actually changed the direction I wanted to take with my career. So for me, it’s important to ensure students and new graduates have a positive experience with nursing mentors. If I have made some small difference to nursing students’ experience of mental health nursing, I am happy with that.

What would you say to a person considering a career in nursing?
It’s never too late to consider a career in nursing. If you consider yourself to be caring, compassionate and curious, do it.