10. Resources

There are several possible explanations why antipsychotic drugs can be effective in controlling and reducing psychotic symptoms:

• Blocking the action of dopamine. Researchers believe that some psychotic experiences are caused by your brain producing too much of a chemical called dopamine (dopamine is a neurotransmitter, which means that it passes messages around your brain). Most antipsychotic drugs are known to block some of the dopamine receptors in the brain – this reduces the flow of messages, which may be too frequent in psychotic states.
• Affecting other brain chemicals. Most antipsychotics are known to affect other brain chemicals too, such as the neurotransmitters serotonin and noradrenaline, which are both thought to be involved in regulating mood.
• (Mind.UK)

Reflection is a process that invites you to look back on the most significant events that have happened in your work and: describe what happened (Description) think about how it made you feel (Feelings) assess what was good and what was bad about the experience (Evaluation) (Royal Collage of Nursing).

Reflection on practice is a key skill for nurses. Engaging in regular reflection enables practitioners to manage the personal and professional impact of addressing their patients’ fundamental health and well-being needs on a daily basis.

Theory of reflective practice

In frontline settings such as hospitals, mental health wards and community services nurses have important roles in addressing basic human needs related to the physical and mental wellbeing of patients and service users. Working reflectively in these settings is important for nurses for a variety of reasons, including:

• There is an emotional cost to nurses of caring for others who are vulnerable. This is a result of nurses being confronted with deep-seated human needs and anxieties on a daily basis;
• They need to be change agents in the lives of people who use their services

Interpersonal skills, self-awareness and the ability to influence others towards positive change are, therefore, key skills for nurses. Reflective practice facilitates the development of these skills by fostering an understanding of practice events and how one’s own approach, personality and personal history contributed to the way situations arose and how they were dealt with (Oelofsen, 2012; Somerville and Keeling, 2004).

Citation: Oelofsen N (2012) Using reflective practice in frontline nursing. Nursing Times; 108: 24, 22-24.

Someone who sleeps or lives outside because they have no home.

Homeless people constitute a heterogeneous population characterised by multiple morbidity (primarily alcohol and drug dependence, and mental disorders) and premature mortality. The problems need to be addressed by many measures, requiring a focused primary health care system and multi-agency cooperation. World Health Organisation.

Schizophrenia is a severe long-term mental health condition. It causes a range of different psychological symptoms. Doctors often describe schizophrenia as a type of psychosis. This means the person may not always be able to distinguish their own thoughts and ideas from reality.

(NHS. U.K.)

A spinal cord injury (SCI) is damage to the spinal cord that causes temporary or permanent changes in its function. Symptoms may include loss of muscle function, sensation, or autonomic function in the parts of the body served by the spinal cord below the level of the injury

Key Facts WHO

• Every year, around the world, between 250 000 and 500 000 people suffer a spinal cord injury (SCI).
• The majority of spinal cord injuries are due to preventable causes such as road traffic crashes, falls or violence.
• People with a spinal cord injury are two to five times more likely to die prematurely than people without a spinal cord injury, with worse survival rates in low- and middle-income countries.
• Spinal cord injury is associated with lower rates of school enrollment and economic participation, and it carries substantial individual and societal costs.

conjures up a mental picture associated with a bias or prejudice toward a group or individuals with similarities.

Unconscious biases are social stereotypes about certain groups of people that individuals form outside their own conscious awareness. Everyone holds unconscious beliefs about various social and identity groups, and these biases stem from one's tendency to organise social worlds by categorising them

Someone who is vulnerable is weak and without protection with the result that they are easily hurt physically or emotionally (Oxford English Dictionary).