*Nurses' Coping Strategies When Caring for Mental Health Care Users Diagnosed with Substance… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.107034*

interviews such as Psychiatric Research Interview for Substance and Mental Disorders (PRISM), Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) as well as the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID) [7]. Detecting and addressing SUDs proactively and systematically is essential for two reasons. Firstly, to protect the safety of all MHCUs and to enable healthcare professionals such as nurses to recognise problems early and intervene swiftly [9]. In many countries such as South Africa, when the MHCUs are finally diagnosed with SUDs, nurses are the ones who care for them. This includes assistants, staff and professional nurses. Caring is a hallmark of nursing and maybe the rationale why nursing has long enjoyed a high level of respect by the public [10]. However, the authors of this chapter noted that nursing is not the same anymore due to the MHCUs, particularly those who are admitted due to SUDs. It should also be noted that authors of this chapter share their experiences based on the South African context.

In spite of the above information, many studies show that caring for MHCUs who are diagnosed with SUD is challenging for the nurses and deemed demanding as nurses reported that these users are untrustworthy. This leaves the nurses emotionally and physically drained [1, 11]. Nurses caring for MHCUs who are diagnosed with SUDs experience frustration, anger, fear, burnout, occupational stress, emotional exhaustion, helplessness and demotivation [11]. Other nurses reported that MHCUs who are diagnosed with SUDs could be violent, aggressive and potentially threatening, thus providing a rationale for the negative views of some nurses toward caring for these MHCUs [1]. Health care professionals in general have negative attitudes toward MHCUs who are diagnosed with SUDs. Nurses are not excluded from this problem. This may lead to poor communication between the health care providers and MHCUs and this may taint the therapeutic alliance [1]. All these concerns show that a lot needs to be done in the area of mental health and SUDs. However, the authors of this chapter want to emphasise that nurses must respect the constitutional rights of these MHCs as enshrined in constitutions of many countries especially with regards to their rights to dignity and respect. On the other hand, it should be noted that most of the nurses are not coping when they care for MHCUs who are diagnosed with SUDs. The above discussion led to the following question:

What are the nurses' coping strategies when caring for MHCUs who are diagnosed with SUDs? This is the question that prompted the authors to write this chapter.

*Source*: William A. Haseltine.
