NR592 Week 1 | Nursing in Health Care - Norwich university

NR592 PMHNP - Population Focus Pharmacology Week 1 Discussion Your instructor will prime the discussion forum this week. Each discussion forum will indicate the student(s) assigned to that forum, as well as the unique question(s). Find the discussion forum you are assigned to and respond as a reply with your initial post to the thread. Then, reply to three other discussion forums. Although more than one student may be assigned to each forum, this should be completed as an individual assignment. (If you do not find your name assigned, email your instructor right away.) NR592 PMHNP - Population Focus Pharmacology Week 2 Discussion Discuss how current nomenclature of psychotropic drugs can be misleading in our current context. What can we do to educate patients and communicate more accurately and clearly with patients? NR592 PMHNP - Population Focus Pharmacology Week 3 Discussion New monoamine agonists: Choose one of the new monoamine agonists. Discuss risks and benefits of choosing one of these newer medications to treat your patients’ anxiety and depression. Why might you choose a newer one rather than an older one? Elaborate on a case where a newer agent might be helpful and why. Dopamine blockers: Why is dopamine dosed differently for different conditions? Choose a diagnosis that you will likely treat as a provider and consider which dopamine blocker you might use and how you would dose that medication for the diagnosis chosen. NR592 PMHNP - Population Focus Pharmacology Week 4 Discussion Second Messenger Modifier: Discuss the risks and benefits of lithium. Is lithium a dangerous or helpful medication? Describe a case where lithium might be used and possible outcomes. Other Agents: Choose one of the ‘other agents’ presented and discuss why you might choose it over a more traditional medication. Does this choice offer risks or benefits to the patient? NR592 PMHNP - Population Focus Pharmacology Week 5 Discussion Diagnostic Validators: What are the diagnostic validators? How are they at odds with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM), the book typically used to define mental illness for insurance purposes? How might this potentially impact your daily practice?Affective Illness: Describe Major Depressive Illness. What is at least one other diagnosis that may be conflated or confused with this diagnosis and why? NR592 PMHNP - Population Focus Pharmacology Week 6 Discussion Personality: What is a personality trait (‘disorder’)? Which medications treat personality most effectively? Often medication fails to treat personality. What are your options as a provider if this is the case? What would you do for a patient who does not respond to medication? Addiction: Discuss pharmacologic choices for the treatment of addiction. Can addiction be treated with medication alone? What additional supports do you need as a provider to treat addiction effectively? NR592 PMHNP - Population Focus Pharmacology Week 7 Discussion Seasonal Affective Illness: What is seasonal affective illness? What are medications as well as behavioral interventions that can be used to treat SAI? As a provider, would you plan to see a patient with SAI only at the times of year when they are affected by seasons? Children: Choose one of the diagnoses identified in children and how it can be managed with medication, as well as if behavioral interventions are effective. NR592 PMHNP - Population Focus Pharmacology Week 8 Discussion Older Persons: Choose one diagnosis in an older adult, identify the challenges that diagnosis presents with aging, and which medication may be used to treat it, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of this choice in an older person. Women: Discuss the risks and benefits of the use of psychotropic medications during pregnancy. In practice, will you treat women during pregnancy and lactation? Why or why not? NR592 PMHNP - Population Focus Pharmacology Week 9 Discussion Cultural Aspects: How does treatment of psychiatric conditions in America differ from other places in the world? Should this affect the way we practice? Can we learn from the way psychiatric conditions are managed elsewhere? Treatment vs. Enhancement: Describe the dilemma of treatment vs. enhancement. How might this become challenging in caring for patients? As a provider, imagine a scenario where this dilemma could arise during every day practice. Pharmaceutical Industry: What role does the pharmaceutical industry play in prescribing? Do pharmaceutical companies cause overprescribing and polypharmacy? What responsibility will you have as a provider in this situation? NR592 PMHNP - Population Focus Pharmacology Week 10 Discussion Med Check: What is a med check? How can we use those visits effectively in practice? How long does a provider need to spend with a patient to have an effective visit in psychiatry? Placebo Effect: What is the placebo effect? How can it be helpful in psychiatric practice? Do you have a responsibility to share with the patient if you feel they are experiencing a placebo rather than a therapeutic effect? NR592 PMHNP - Population Focus Pharmacology Week 11 Discussion Describe how you would like to practice prescribing psychotropic medications. What type of prescriber will you be and why? Feel free to be idealistic; start to work on establishing a prescribing philosophy!