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Nurses' Knowledge Of Signs And Symptoms Of Anxiety And Agitation, Cindy L. Disano

Master's Theses, Dissertations, Graduate Research and Major Papers Overview

The diagnosis of mental illness is becoming more prevalent in the United States. With the increased identification, it is imperative that health care professionals are astute in identifying mental health conditions and behaviors associated with those conditions. The most common use of pro re nata (PRN) or “as needed” psychoactive medications in the inpatient psychiatric setting is for the reduction of behaviors associated with anxiety, agitation, and aggression. The administration of PRN medication rests solely on the nursing staff and their ability to use autonomous clinical decision-making to distinguish between different behaviors associated with those conditions prior to the administration …