Community Psychiatric Nurse – Primary Care 1

Job/Role Summary

• Managing a defined caseload
• Health education
• Therapeutic interventions
• Planning and implementing care plans
• Multi-disciplinary cooperation and communication
• Effective time management
• Personal development
• Clinical record keeping
• Evaluating and reviewing care programs.

Specific qualifications and experience required

• Registered Mental Health Nurse on part 3 of the register
• Minimum of two years experience post-registration
• Full driving licence and access to a car.

Career Milestones

I had the opportunity to be seconded for a year to a community setting and I feel this both widened my career horizons and sparked an interest in further developing new skills required for community work. As a result I was able to apply for and be successful in attaining additional qualifications. I was also exposed to situations which provided experiences that helped to develop me personally and professionally and developed my skills in client care.

What attracted you to this job?

• Talking through experiences with nurses already in similar posts
• Opportunities for career enhancement
• Availability of opportunities was more in a community setting as compared with a hospital setting.

Enjoyable aspects of the job/role

• Flexibility in the approaches to client care
• Diversity of treatments which facilitate involving non-statutory and voluntary groups
• The holistic person-centred approach to patient/ client care.

Important success factors

• Good educational development and continuing professional development opportunities
• Good line management support
• Excellent peer-sharing and support – dissemination of information and learning between colleagues.

Advice for those considering the type of job/role?

You should think about spending time talking through issues with someone in a similar role or to perhaps seek an opportunity to shadow a CPN for a day or two. It would be helpful to investigate the current trends in community health care if you were thinking about specializing eventually

Key skills that can be gained within this job/role?

• Effective organisation skills
• Effective caseload management skills
• Computer/ technology skills
• Skills in the use of multi-media
• Skills in self development and continuing professional development.

Career Profiles