Care for Mental Health Patients and Suicide Support

Acquired Brain Injuries (ABI)

• Acquired brain injury (ABI) is a sudden injury or illness causing temporary or permanent brain damage.
• Emotional impact on clients with ABI may include frustration, anxiety, mood swings, and depression.
• Family adjustments may be needed due to changes in the client's personality and loss of financial contributions.
• Undiagnosed ABI can lead to clients being mislabeled, misdiagnosed, and misunderstood, potentially increasing frustration and anxiety.

Supporting Clients with Acquired Brain Injuries

• Follow care plans to reassure clients their symptoms are related to the brain injury, reducing fear and anxiety.
• Establish routines for daily tasks to build self-esteem, provide a sense of accomplishment, and reduce decision-related anxiety.
• Assist clients in setting realistic short-term and long-term goals to maintain motivation and focus.
• Provide support in managing setbacks and encourage perseverance if goals are not immediately met.
• Ensure adaptive devices are accessible for the client's needs
• Encourage clients to shift their focus from lost abilities to engaging in rehabilitation activities.
• Adhere to guidelines for supporting clients with anxiety or depressive disorders, as instructed.
• Monitor for signs of alcohol or drug misuse due to depression or impaired judgment.

Anxiety Disorders

• Anxiety disorders involve disproportionate fear or worry affecting normal functioning.
• Anxiety is a vague, uneasy feeling in response to stress.
• Most anxiety disorders start in childhood and persist if untreated.
• Symptoms include feelings of dread, danger, or harm, and can range from debilitating to allowing high function.
• Treatment includes medication use, and learning coping strategies.
• Medication can continuously be used to reduce symptoms
• Coping strategies include relaxation techniques, maintaining a healthy lifestyle, challenging negative thoughts, and journaling.

Supporting Clients with Anxiety

• Avoid situations or environments known to trigger anxiety, like small spaces.
• Steer clear of anxiety-inducing topics and focus on other subjects.
• Offer comfort by staying with the client during anxiety or panic attacks, using reassuring touch, and offering clear, limited choices.
• Report the situation to a supervisor for further assistance.

Trauma & Stressor Related Disorders

• Trauma and stressor-related disorders, including PTSD, develop after experiencing overwhelmingly traumatic events.
• Traumatic events include residential schools, war, fires, accidents, torture, kidnapping, concentration camps, incest, or violent crimes.
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder affects people of all ages, ethnicities, cultures, and genders.
• Signs and symptoms include nightmares, nervousness, avoidance of triggers, difficulty concentrating, and feeling a loss of control.
• Symptom categories include reliving the trauma, feelings of avoidance, and increased anxiety/arousal.
• Associated issues include substance abuse, phobias, chronic pain, sleep disturbances, and anger.
• In older adults, PTSD may be triggered by significant life changes like deaths or loss of social contact.
• Triggers in long-term care facilities may include rough treatment or loss of control during care.

Supporting Clients with PTSD

• Implement gentle care following DIPPS principles (Dignity, Independence, Preferences, Privacy, and Safety).
• Encourage expression and avoid dismissive reassurances.
• Be aware that PTSD can be triggered at any time due to past traumatic events.
• Observe changes in the client's willingness to perform activities of daily living.
• Report and document any changes in behavior or reactions immediately.

Major Depressive Disorder

• Major Depressive Disorder involves severe feelings of worthlessness, sadness, and emptiness lasting weeks, interfering with ADLs.
• It may lead to suicidal thoughts or attempts, and is common in older adults due to multiple losses and life changes.
• Can be caused or triggered by stressful events, or recur throughout life
• Medical intervention improves symptoms for 80% of those affected.
• Treatment options include psychotherapy, drug therapy, and electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).
• Depression in older persons can be triggered by losses, loneliness, poor nutrition, or moving to long-term care settings.
• Depression in older persons is often overlooked or misdiagnosed as aches, pains, dementia, or delirium.

Supporting Clients with Depression

• Show interest in the client's life and actively listen during interactions.
• Recognize that undiagnosed clients may not realize they are depressed, so avoid dismissive statements.
• Promote positivity by providing positive experiences.
• Encourage rest and proper nutrition to maintain blood sugar and energy levels.
• Support light activities and social interactions to improve well-being.
• Be alert for warning signs of suicidal intent.
• Ensure safety by locking away sharp objects if the client expresses suicidal intentions.
• Support or assist the client in completing ADLs to maintain physical health and homeostasis.
• Provide a safe, secure, and stable environment.
• Adhere care plans.
• Older clients struggling with depression need proper nutrition, hydration, and regular bowel movements
• Older clients struggling with depression should get medication adherence, and limit misuse of OTC drugs or alcohol.
• Older clients struggling with depression should get social interactions given physical activity, fresh air, and sensory stimulation.
• Provide opportunities for reminiscence groups and interactions with pets.
• Provide opportunities for the client to feel wanted and needed.
• Provide a safe environment to ensure regular medical checkups for both physical and mental health

Bipolar Disorder

• Bipolar disorder is a long-term brain disorder that causes extreme swings in mood, energy, and functionality.
• Symptoms include emotional swings from normal to grandiose (mania) and then to depressed.
• The Impact includes damaged relationships, poor performance in daily activities, and an increased risk of suicide.
• Phases of symptoms start with an acute phase, then a continuation phase, then the maintenance phase when symptoms subside.
• Continuous treatment is more effective than intermittent care.
• Treatment includes medication to achieve mood stabilization and lead productive lives, but changes should reported.
• Collaboration with healthcare improves treatment

Supporting Clients with Bipolar Disorder

• Follow depression guideline during depressive cycle
• During Manic Phases make the following adjustments:
• Provide a calm environment without too many distractions.
• Provide a safe, secure, and consistent environment.
• Encourage periods of rest.
• Encourage self-care; assist as required.
• Avoid arguments.
• Offer finger foods with high nutritional density.

Disruptive, Impulse-Control and Conduct Disorders

• Disruptive, Impulse-Control and Conduct Disorders are characterized by difficult, disruptive, aggressive, or antisocial behaviors.
• Involve harm to self, others, or objects, or violations of rights
• Involve Angry/Irritable Mood, Argumentative/Defiant Behavior and Vindictiveness types of behavior
• Can be defensive, premeditated, or impulsive nature.
• A key distinction is aggressive behaviors in dementia, that are not premeditated but occur due to environmental factors

Supporting Clients with Disruptive, Impulse-Control and Conduct Disorders

• Show that you're caring, nonjudgmental, and understanding clients may lack insight into their feelings
• Give them Safety: Maintain distance, keep an exit path open, avoid escalation, and leave if aggression occurs.
• Control Verbal Aggression: Stay clam identify triggers (hunger, pain) and professional polite actions
• Guide them to Encourage Growth: Help clients reframe thoughts, recognize anger as a choice, and explore ways to achieve happiness.

Eating Disorders

• Eating Disorders are disorders involving altered body image, disturbed eating behaviors, and excessive concern about weight and shape.
• Can be Risk factors Influenced by biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors and can be seen by:
• Individuals seeking an "ideal" figure or professions emphasizing thinness.
• Older adults, may refuse food due to issues like fear of choking, depression, or food texture.
• Need Early diagnosis and treatment improve outcomes.
• Treatment involves:
• Weight restoration (2.2-6.6 kg or 1-3 lbs per week), therapy (individual, family, group), hospitalization
• Common Disorder:
• Nervosa, complications are reversible once weight is restored.
• May cause permanent damage to teeth, throat, esophagus, needs dental care.

Supporting Clients with Eating Disorders

• Be Patient: Understand that anger or denial stem from shame and pain.
• Be Compassionate: Recognize that food and weight issues reflect psychological or cultural factors.
• Be Encouraging: Focus on the client's strengths unrelated to food or body image.
• B Nonjudgmental: Avoid comments about appearance or weight, and do not blame or shame the client.
• Be Positive: Neutral, supportive language and comfortable for discussions
• Prevent Harm: Monitor clients with pica to prevent eating nonfood items, and ensure medical. Medical: Report symptoms (vomiting or food refusal) supervisor guidance on handling.

Obsessive-Complusive and Related Disorders

• Metal disorders involved with recurring obsessions, distress thoughts, and urges that are difficult to control
• Involves fear of harming others through thoughts and preoccupation with violent or harmful ideas
• Common Compulsions show that they are often doing repeated handwashing, repeating phrases, hoarding
• This has a Support Role where you should Report and Understand that actions reduce significant stress level.

Supporting Clients with OCD

• Establish Connection: Show that you are involved
• Minimize: Understand their compulsions and avoid arguing
• Encourage the patient and Ensure you provide rest and that you are not enabling them
• Have in place stability , the plan, what is needed to do
• Most of all Celebrate and Encourage the ADLS

Personality Disorders

• Disorders involving socially unacceptable behavior, mood, and personal and impulse control
• The characteristic should Demand, Manipulate, Hostile, and antisocial
• This should be not classified as an illness but from childhood due to linked to the trauma
• A healer will require to Desire change, insight and have a support system

Supporting Clients with Personality disorders

• Be Nonjudgmental: Understand others feelings
• Professional: Show compassion and stick to plan
• Consistently to avoid staff corruption
• Do not accept: Gifts and keep a set amount of details

Schizophrenia

• Is a chronic health disorder that is characterized by thought
• The symptoms may can range from Impared perception, delusions and hallucinations and emotional blunting and speech
• It can effect all aspects of life including work, education, and care
• Needs proper care.
• Usually genetic can be a sudden out break which can create hallucinations

Supporting Clients on Clients with Schizophrenia

• Get clients to focus on a time
• Give positive reinforcement
• Stay calm and give empathy without arguing and give them space

Self-Harm

• Involves intentional release to cope with trauma
• Involves a low self esteem or mental health and can cause cutting, over doing
• Look for teenagers with a mental illness, eating disorders, and anxiety
• Warning they have unexplained: Wounds and scars, constant accidents with unexplainable covering

Supporting Clients who are known/Self-Harm risk

• Proper medical to prevent infection/harm
• Focus on: there well being and foster communication in non pressuring
• Recommend a health support

Sleep-Wake Disorders

• Disturbed sleep patterns causing distress and impairing daytime functioning.
• Insomnia is most common
• Over the age of 65 have half of adults experience sleep issues

Supporting clients who are known/sleep wake isues

• Limit Sleep disruptors: as these are proven to ruin deep sleep
• Monitor: for sleep apnea
• Address and look for help with sleeping

Substance-Related & Addictive Disorders

• Misuse and not stop substances prescription drugs or alcohol or marijuana, relation and work
• The effects range from hallucinations, aggression, or greater self confidence from:
• Tolerance and withdrawals to over dosing

How To support your clients with addiction

• Report suspisious incidents or potential actions to the supervisor
• Do not argue with the client and seek support from a superviser at all times

Suicidal Behavior Disorders

• Thinking about the future and hope this involves:
• At times people feel that the love ones are better away out.
• Men often succeed at a more rate than women and some people feel that at sometimes someone needs help, and you have to take serious action when thinking such a measure

Risk Factors for Suicidal Intent

• Involve past trauma like:
• Family suicide, abuse, and personal life
• Relationship problems
• And financial/ legal issues
• Or if someone one drinks to much and social problem
• Emotional/ Instability

Probing for Suicidal Intent

• Always ask what has affected them and caused such thoughts
• Be direct and ask if there is a said plan in order
• Do not be personal but involve it with your:
• Feelings
• Ask there feeling
• And give them care

Supporting Clients with Suicidal Intent

• Maintain A safe and caring environment to help them calm
• Stay and ensure others you are on your safe
• Be willing and patient to talk, listen and take active interest in the client