effect of assertive training techniques on improving coping skills of nurses in psychiatric set up

Psychiatric mental health nurses are confronted with the daily responsibility of assessing, intervening and evaluating client responses to stress and client interactions. They need to identify the meaning of their own stress and develop strategies that increase personal and professional growth. Some nurses may have learned to express their needs honestly to use anger constructively, to improve personal and work relation ships and to build self-confidence through assertive behavior. But others still struggle with being assertive, perhaps because they don't believe they have the right to be assertive, they are anxious about asserting themselves or they don't know how to be assertive Learning assertive techniques are considered as tools for coping skills with a variety of life stressors. Increasing assertive behavior becomes an expression of person's feelings. So the aim of this study was to assess the effects of assertive training techniques on coping skills of nurses working in psychiatric setup. The study was conducted on nurses at Tanta Mental Health Hospital, Ministry of Health [n=58]. Data were collected using four tools, Assessment of Coping Skill inventory, Assertiveness inventory, 5 selected situations, 5 selected clinical situations used only as a post-test. The study showed that a significant change was found in level of assertiveness responses and coping responses of the studied nurses before and after training. The assertiveness training affect on coping level of the nurses significantly as the coping level of nurses has improved after the training. This revealed that the assertiveness training helped nurses to communicate and to be more tolerant to their patients in different situations

Clinical teachers' effectiveness as perceived by nursing students

The aim of this study was to assess clinical teachers' effectiveness as perceived by nursing students at El-Mansoura Higher Institute of Nursing before and after conducting an educational program for clinical teachers. Results of this study yielded an improvement of knowledge among clinical teachers after the program. Results also reflected a positive change in the students' perceptions of their clinical teachers, this change was obvious after conducting the workshop

Psychiatric nurse's image in Egypt: access for development

Nurses, working in the field of mental health, are mostly of general qualification [technical certificate]. The very few highly qualified, who got masters and doctoral degrees in psychiatric nursing, do not pursue clinical settings for work. Consequently, the mental health service lacks the important contribution of specialized psychiatric nurse. Among the many factors that influence acceptance or rejection of nursing certain speciality, is the image of that job. This study investigated three dimensions of the psychiatric nurse's image in Egypt, i.e. the educational preparation for a Bachelor Degree in nursing in Egypt, the society perception of mental illness and mental health personnel, and the government input and attitude regarding the provision of the essential facilities required for this service. Results revealed high interest of the qualified nurses in the field of psychiatry, yet the poor public image of the psychiatric nurse, stopped them from joining this profession. A number of recommendations were suggested to deal with this problem