A question for student nurses with mental health issues

When applying - just wondering the following;

did they check your medical notes during the application procedure?

I have a mental health issue and wondered if my consultant will be asked to confirm whether I am stable or not.

I’ve heard about the occupational therapist and psychiatrist - will the consult with my current doctor about my status?

Reply 1

normaw

Clearing and Applications Advisor, Universities Forum Helper

Hello!
I'm a student nurse, currently doing dual field Mental Health/Child Nursing, and I also have a mental health condition.
It really does depend on what issue it is and how it affects you on a day to day basis. On your university application they won't ask you about it, I did bring it up during an interview at Winchester Uni and they ended up offering me Adult Nursing instead of Mental Health. My recommendation would be to not mention it in an interview, I'm not sure if that had anything to do with them changing my course offer.

When you get accepted to a university and you accept the offer, they will ask you to fill out an occupational health form and you will have a few regular appointments with the occupational therapists, who will deem if you are fit to work. Plenty of nurses suffer from depression or anxiety due to work related stress, so there is no reason for them to say you can't be a nurse due to a mental health condition, unless it is severe and affects you from studying or completing placements.

I hope this helps (:

Reply 3

Sunflower999

OP

8

Original post by caitriana

Hello!
I'm a student nurse, currently doing dual field Mental Health/Child Nursing, and I also have a mental health condition.
It really does depend on what issue it is and how it affects you on a day to day basis. On your university application they won't ask you about it, I did bring it up during an interview at Winchester Uni and they ended up offering me Adult Nursing instead of Mental Health. My recommendation would be to not mention it in an interview, I'm not sure if that had anything to do with them changing my course offer.

When you get accepted to a university and you accept the offer, they will ask you to fill out an occupational health form and you will have a few regular appointments with the occupational therapists, who will deem if you are fit to work. Plenty of nurses suffer from depression or anxiety due to work related stress, so there is no reason for them to say you can't be a nurse due to a mental health condition, unless it is severe and affects you from studying or completing placements.

I hope this helps (:

Hello thanks for your advice.

Did they ask for consent to see your medical records?

Basically I’ve had a couple of episodes over the period of 7 years. I haven’t been diagnosed with schizophrenia, but they were schizophrenic like in nature.

I’ve responded to the medication really well and am now stable. I think I’ll be on this medication indefinitely from now.

I’ve read success stories of people who have had years /decades of mental health problems severely affecting them becoming nurses after being treated and recovering to being stable.

I hope to be one of these stories and am hoping to be accepted onto the course.

Because people know about my issues I feel like I have to tell them to prevent it coming up later - like someone reported concerns about me as a nurse because they know about my previous issues. I feel like it’s just better they know about it from the beginning to avoid it being a shock later on down the line

Reply 4

caitriana

1

Original post by Sunflower999

Hello thanks for your advice.

Did they ask for consent to see your medical records?

Basically I’ve had a couple of episodes over the period of 7 years. I haven’t been diagnosed with schizophrenia, but they were schizophrenic like in nature.

I’ve responded to the medication really well and am now stable. I think I’ll be on this medication indefinitely from now.

I’ve read success stories of people who have had years /decades of mental health problems severely affecting them becoming nurses after being treated and recovering to being stable.

I hope to be one of these stories and am hoping to be accepted onto the course.

Because people know about my issues I feel like I have to tell them to prevent it coming up later - like someone reported concerns about me as a nurse because they know about my previous issues. I feel like it’s just better they know about it from the beginning to avoid it being a shock later on down the line

You will receive a form that asks about previous medical history, before you start a course, and this is sent to occupational health.

They will be able to see the history on your health record and will ask you about it (They asked me, as I have long term history of bipolar) but just be truthful and explain your situation, and that it will not affect you from working in your chosen field of nursing. They will need to know what medication you are on.

I have a woman in my cohort who suffers from psychosis, which have similar symptoms of schizophrenia. She is accepted into the same course as me and they asked her the same questions.

Hope this is helpful x

Reply 5

Sunflower999

OP

8

Thanks so much! This is great news.

It doesn’t help that someone offered me cannabis as mental health help when I was younger and I fell into the hole with it.

This is something my GP was aware of because I was worried about how I’d started smoking it. I was asking them for mental health help. They told me it’s ok to smoke it just not too often strangely enough but this is recorded in my medical records that he and the first hospital doctor after the first episode said this to me as well.

After the second hospitalisation (hopefully the last now my medication has changed) they said don’t smoke it ever and I am very happily following this advice because of the amazing difference the medication has made for me.

I wish i had got here sooner and will explain my history to them.

I’ve read success stories of two ex heroin addicts in the papers (Joanne hill from Swansea university and Cavan McKenna from Barrow if you want to look them up) who became nurses after recovery from heroin addiction so I’m feeling quite inspired to put myself forward

A question for student nurses with mental health issues

Quick Reply

Related discussions

Latest

Trending

Trending

Articles for you