specialty focus
specialty focus
“ Keep professionalising mental health nurses and providing support and incentives for us to grow , learn , and develop
Sonia Bayley graduated with a master ’ s in mental health nursing . Picture : Supplied
Course correct
Nursing for a stronger tomorrow : one mentalhealth nurses ’ journey
By Arshmah Jamal
A
mental health nurse graduated with her master ’ s degree , hoping to climb the ranks to help patients at her rural hospital .
Sonia Bayley was a consultant liaison nurse at Alice Springs Hospital when she realised she needed to further her studies to help her local community .
“ We ’ re very short-staffed in Alice Springs ,” Ms Bayley told Nursing Review .
“ Having this degree and specialised training will help the community we care for .”
Ms Bayley began her journey as a mental health nurse in 2013 working at various acute psychiatric hospitals across Melbourne .
When Covid-19 hit , Sonia felt like her life and job had reached a standstill .
“ I was really burning out , and I was just very unhealthy with everything ,” she said .
In 2021 , Ms Bayley made the decision to move to the Northern Territory and found her calling as a consultant liaison nurse at Alice Springs Hospital .
“ Since coming here , I ’ ve come to a highly specialised and unique unit in Australia that I don ’ t think I can get anywhere else ,” Sonia said .
“ I work with First Nations Australians suffering from mental illnesses , and we have a very holistic approach where we incorporate traditional Western medicines and traditional cultural medicine .
“ Witnessing their interwoven hardships , adversities , and complexities when delivering holistic care is a really social , spiritual , and emotional experience .”
A year ago , Ms Bayley realised that she wanted to do more with her work at the hospital and broaden her scope of practice .
After a long search , she enrolled at the University of Newcastle ’ s Master of Mental Health Nursing program .
“ I needed something that was online and flexible because I wanted to still work at the hospital ,” Ms Bayley said .
“ I emailed the Australian College of Mental Health Nurses about studying at the University of Newcastle , and they said it was a great curriculum .”
It ’ s no secret that nurses are burning out and quitting their jobs .
For Ms Bayley , burnout was a lived and learned experience that she would never want to go through again .
“ I am reluctant to do extra shifts unless I feel motivated myself ,” she said .
“ I have clear boundaries and really practice self-care like exercising , having hobbies outside of work , and being kind to myself .”
Due to the closeness and cohesiveness of the team , Ms Bayley said feelings of guilt would sometimes bubble within her when she would reject a shift .
“ It was bad when I first started , but I had to get into a habit of reminding myself that extra shifts would not help in the long run and would damage me and , eventually , the team .”
With the need for mental health nursing on a steep rise , Ms Bayley said the government should support mental-health nurses to keep them on the job .
“ Keep professionalising mental health nurses and providing support and incentives for us to grow , learn , and develop ,” Sonia said .
“ When people stay in jobs , they believe to be static , it kills their enthusiasm to learn and become better .” ■
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