A national survey of practice nurse involvement in mental health interventions

Background: The move in the United Kingdom (UK) from institutional to commu nity care has led to an inevitable increase in the involvement of practice nurses (PNs) in mental health care. Around 20 000 PNs are currently working in the United Kingdom (UK). However, the extent and nature of PN involveme nt in delivering mental health interventions has not been adequately explor ed. Aim: This study aimed to quantify practice nurses' involvement in deliv ering mental health interventions in primary care settings. Method: A quest ionnaire was sent to a random sample of 1500 practice nurses registered,wit h the Practice Nurse Forum at the Royal College of Nursing. Sixty per cent of questionnaires were returned; however, once non-eligible respondents wer e removed an adjusted response rate of 54% was achieved. Results: Practice nurses play a significant role in the assessment and treatment of mental he alth problems, most frequently via the administration of depot antipsychoti cs and the screening for depression. However, antipsychotic side-effects we re infrequently monitored and PNs' understanding of treatment issues in dep ression is poor. These findings may be associated with the reported lack of mental health training that PNs have received. Conclusions: The findings o f this study have important implications for the training of practice nurse s in mental health, specifically in the areas of medication management and the detection of mental disorders.