Week 11: Journal Entry
College of Nursing PMHNP, Walden University
PRAC 6675: PMHNP Care Across the Lifespan II
14:54:03 GMT -05:00
, Learning From Experiences
Throughout my studies for the Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) specialty,
I gained a strong knowledge of evidence-based practices guidelines, and the diversity and
vulnerability of the patient population I will be working with. The scientific foundations assured
that I could apply critical thinking when analyzing data and applying evidence-based practice. I
can fully formulate specific diagnoses based on the data obtained through individual subjective
and objective data and develop a differential diagnosis for such clients. Once the diagnosis was
correlated, I prescribed the appropriate psychotropic medications to treat this diagnosis. With
follow-up psychotropic medication sessions, I adjusted, changed, discontinued, or supplemented
the current treatment as needed based on the client's subjective feedback. I found with follow-up
treatment that as symptoms emerged, the diagnosis could change because clients' mental health
issues often have comorbidities. For example, children with attention deficit hyperactivity
disorder (ADHD) are often diagnosed with oppositional defiant disorder (ODD). Lastly, by
working with my preceptor, I formulated an appropriate treatment plan for my clients that
incorporated both medications and psychotherapy specific to each client.
One challenging client I encountered was a 43 y/o Caucasian male that voluntarily admitted
himself to the crisis center for suicidal ideation. He was diagnosed with both schizoid personality
disorder and major depressive disorder. Despite putting him on multiple antidepressants, he
14:54:03 GMT -05:00
College of Nursing PMHNP, Walden University
PRAC 6675: PMHNP Care Across the Lifespan II
14:54:03 GMT -05:00
, Learning From Experiences
Throughout my studies for the Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) specialty,
I gained a strong knowledge of evidence-based practices guidelines, and the diversity and
vulnerability of the patient population I will be working with. The scientific foundations assured
that I could apply critical thinking when analyzing data and applying evidence-based practice. I
can fully formulate specific diagnoses based on the data obtained through individual subjective
and objective data and develop a differential diagnosis for such clients. Once the diagnosis was
correlated, I prescribed the appropriate psychotropic medications to treat this diagnosis. With
follow-up psychotropic medication sessions, I adjusted, changed, discontinued, or supplemented
the current treatment as needed based on the client's subjective feedback. I found with follow-up
treatment that as symptoms emerged, the diagnosis could change because clients' mental health
issues often have comorbidities. For example, children with attention deficit hyperactivity
disorder (ADHD) are often diagnosed with oppositional defiant disorder (ODD). Lastly, by
working with my preceptor, I formulated an appropriate treatment plan for my clients that
incorporated both medications and psychotherapy specific to each client.
One challenging client I encountered was a 43 y/o Caucasian male that voluntarily admitted
himself to the crisis center for suicidal ideation. He was diagnosed with both schizoid personality
disorder and major depressive disorder. Despite putting him on multiple antidepressants, he
14:54:03 GMT -05:00
