Marketing Strategies to Reposition Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing Specialty in Student Nurse Education Programs in the United States and China

Kathryn Puskar,Jia Shoume,Ann Mitchell,Tricia Mcfadden

doi:10.15344/2394-4978/2016/209

Abstract

Background: The scarcity of psychiatric nurses is an increasing problem in both the United States and China. Without a systematic effort for the increased recruitment of students into the behavioral health field, the scarcity of psychiatric nurses will persist. To address this problem, three professors in the United States and a visiting international scholar of psychiatry from China joined forces to examine the issues related to the recruitment of student nurses into the mental health nursing specialty in their respective countries. The need for psychiatricmental health nursing (PMHN) practitioners is increasing internationally as more individuals are diagnosed with mental illnesses, and millions of youth and adults aged 14–24 years are at high risk. There has been considerable discussion about contributing factors associated with a decrease in the PMHN specialty. One issue is whether or not educational institutions are effectively marketing PMHN programs and providing their students with the proper curriculum and training. Materials and Methods: Literatures published within the past 10 years were reviewed in combination with the collaborative face-to-face discussions. Results: Psychiatric nursing shortage has caused concerns considering the increasing demand of patients with mental illnesses. Contributing factors were identified including aging workforce, de-emphasis of the PMHN courses in nursing education, and stigma associated with working with psychotic patients. Conclusions: Marketing strategies for repositioning PMHN programs were proposed to eliminate the shortage of PMHN nurses in both China and the United States.

Highlights

IntroductionIntroduction to psychiatric mental health nursing (PMHN) Etiology andSymptoms of Mental Disorders. Mental illnesses lead to more disability than any other chronic illnesses, and extensively contribute to the burden of diseases worldwide; the number of patients with mental illnesses and co-occurring physical illnesses are on the rise throughout the world[1,2]
Introduction to psychiatric mental health nursing (PMHN) Etiology andSymptoms of Mental Disorders
The WHO reports that the United States possesses 3.1 advanced practice psychiatric nurses per 100,000 people; globally, 7.7 nurses work in this area per 100,000 people [7]

Summary

Introduction

Introduction to PMHN Etiology andSymptoms of Mental Disorders. Mental illnesses lead to more disability than any other chronic illnesses, and extensively contribute to the burden of diseases worldwide; the number of patients with mental illnesses and co-occurring physical illnesses are on the rise throughout the world[1,2]. The number of nursing students both undergraduate and graduate choosing mental health nursing as a career has decreased in the United States and China among other countries. To meet this challenge, more psychiatric nurses with adequate mental health training are needed especially in the United States and China, with their unmet treatment needs and limited capacity vis-à-vis mental illness. The number of undergraduate nursing students who choose to pursue PMHN as a profession has remained low over the past years in the United States and China. From the point of view of nursing students, there are several reasons for this: nursing students (1) fail to understand the multiple roles of PMHN, (2) have negative attitudes toward mental illness [3], (3) view psychiatric placements less favorably that other placements [4], and (5) regard the PMHN specialty as being unappealing and stressful [5]

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion