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Managing aggressive behavior in mental health hospitals poses a formidable challenge for nurses and other mental health workers. Despite programs instituted to relieve this burden, aggressive behavior continues to cause injury to staff and patients. It also leads to lost wages, fear in the mental health unit, and a threat to safety. A qualitative hermeneutic phenomenology investigation was conducted within a constructivist perspective to describe and gain a better understanding of mental health nurses’ lived experiences in using verbal de-escalation techniques and multisensory room strategies, with aggressive behavior management in acute mental health hospitals. Through a purposive-snowball sample, the study sample size was 16 mental health nurses located in a densely populated urban area in the Northeastern United States. Snowball sample entailed using experts on the subject matter that referred other experts to the researcher (Patton, 1990; Schmidt & Brown, 2009). The primary source of data collection utilized one-on-one, face-to-face interview recordings that were transcribed and then run through QSR NVivo 10 software in addition to Van Manen suggestion of data analysis. Five major themes and four subthemes revealed (a) verbal de-escalation with sub-themes of talking as a first strategy, and offering help, (b) using multisensory room, (c) staff impression with verbal de-escalation and multisensory room, with sub-themes of establishing a calmer unit, and time needed, (d) therapeutic training, (e) patients’ behavior. The dual goal of this study was to provide insight into leadership in designing annual mandates for mental health nurses and staffing mental health units, as well as suggest more efficient methods of mentoring new nurses in managing aggressive behavior.
Advisor: | Magee-Cornelius, Nita |
Commitee: | |
School: | University of Phoenix |
School Location: | United States -- Arizona |
Source: | DAI-B 76/10(E), Dissertation Abstracts International |
Source Type: | DISSERTATION |
Subjects: | Mental health, Nursing |
Keywords: | Managing aggressive behavior, Mental health nurses, Multisensory room, Using verbal de-escalation |
Publication Number: | 3708851 |
ISBN: | 978-1-321-84295-1 |