4 Year Nursing Degree Programme (BSc Cur) Mental Health Nursing
NU1P03 -Recognising Mental Distress/Illness (5 ECTS)
Learning Outcomes
Following completion of this module the student should be able to:
- Discuss the continuum of mental distress-illness
- Describe the classification of mental health problems using DSM-IV-TR and ICD-10
- Discuss how you would recognise: affective disorders, psychotic disorders, anxiety disorders, personality disorders and suicidal behaviour
- Discuss the strengths and limitations of diagnostic classifications systems from the perspective of service users and health care professionals.
- Discuss the impact of mental health distress/illness on a person and their family/carer.
- Discuss service users personal accounts of mental distress/illness
- Display increased awareness and insight into the lived experience of mental distress/illness
Module Learning Aims
This module will introduce the student to the continuum of mental distress-illness, with an emphasis on
recognising symptoms of acute mental distress/illness and the impact it has. Emphasiswill be placed on
clients' experience and the impact of illness and diagnosis for the person, their families and carers.
During the module students will be introduced to the language and diagnostic classification systems
used in acute mental health care. Students will also be introduced to personal accounts of mental
distress/illness as described by service users and family members.
Recommended Reading List
Essential Reading
- Morrissey J., Keogh, B and Doyle, L. (2008) Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing: An Irish Perspective. Dublin: Gill and MacMillan
Recommended Reading
- Barker, P. (Ed.) (2008) Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing: The Craft of Caring. 2nd Ed. London: Hodder Arnold.
- Saks, E.R. (2007) The Centre Cannot Hold: a memoir of my schizophrenia. London: Virago Press Ltd.
- Videbeck, S.L. (2009) Mental Health Nursing (1st UK Edition). Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins: Philadelphia.
- Wrycraft, N. (2009) Mental Health and recognition of mental illness. In An Introduction to Mental Health Nursing. N. Wrycraft (Ed.) Open University Press: Berkshire.
* Additional readings will be given for each unit of learning.