De-escalation Certificate Course: Managing Challenging Behaviors & Substance Abuse Among Patients – Valerie Vestal

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Most of us enter the healthcare field to help people and save lives…

But how many of us are properly prepared to care for the patients—or loved ones—that reject our life-saving support?

We’ve all been there—burned out by a patient who refuses to cooperate with your treatment plan…

Berated by their family members over your quality of care… feeling like no matter how hard you try, you’re not doing enough to help.

It can be frustrating, exhausting, and sometimes even dangerous to treat a combative patient…

But our new De-escalation Certificate Course: Managing Challenging Behaviors & Substance Abuse Among Patients will give you all the confidence you need to achieve optimal outcomes, no matter the situation!

This one-of-a-kind, self-paced online training includes practical strategies to help you:

• Cope with difficult situations like aggression, dementia, and attention-seeking behaviors while maintaining patient and staff safety
• Expertly spot high-risk behavior
• Improve your communication skills to de-escalate aggressive behavior
• Confidently assess and screen for substance use disorders
• Develop treatment plans for patients with a history of substance abuse, including managing pain effectively
• Understand the conditions benefited by medical marijuana use and the ramifications of legalization
• Learn appropriate patient teaching based on what we know—and don’t know yet—regarding vaping
• … And so much more!

Learn valuable clinical insights from Valerie R. Vestal, MSN, PMHNP-BC., JeanAnne Johnson Talbert, DHA, APRN-BC, FNP, PMHNP, AOCN, CARN-AP, and Maria Broadstreet, RN, MSN, APN with their decades of nursing experience, as well as real-life situations you may encounter at work.

Confront your own biases when working with patients who have substance use disorders and truly help people recover and lead the meaningful, happy lives they desire!

Plus, earn up to 18.5 CE hours on your own schedule, from the comfort of home. Get started today!

Here’s what you’ll learn:

Managing Challenging Patient Behaviors: 101 De-escalation Strategies for Healthcare Professionals

with Valerie Vestal, MSN, PMHNP-BC

Lowering Risk for Dangerousness in Patient Encounters

• Priority is Safety
  • Understanding Risk for Dangerousness
  • Mechanisms for Coping
  • Strategies to Deal with the Angry Patient

Healthcare Goals

• Treatment Focused
• Do No Harm
• Clear Boundaries

Evaluating the Patient

• Ask the Right Questions
• Understand Patient’s Motivation
• Motivational Interviewing: Asking, Listen, Inform
• Engage Patients in Focused Communication
• Listen with Empathy
• Empower the Patient

Interpersonal Effectiveness Skills

• Self-Awareness
• What Type of Communicator Are You?
• Reciprocal Communication Strategies
• Clinician Self-Care

Engage Patients in Focused Communication

• Understand Patient’s Level of Communication
• Support the Patient’s Goal
• Multi-Disciplinary Intervention

Treatment Team Concept

• Navigating Difficult Dynamics
• Mediation & Leadership Roles
• Engage Families Constructively

Understanding Challenging Symptoms

• The Mentally Ill Patient
• Know Your Limits
• Understand Chronic & Severe Mental Illness

Severe Mental Illness

• Schizophrenia/Schizoaffective Disorders
• Substance-Induced Psychosis
• Bipolar Disorder
• Major Depression
• Anxiety Disorder
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
• Antisocial Personality Disorder
• Borderline Personality Disorder

Disorders with Unique Risk

• Developmental Disabilities
• Delirium
• Dementia
• Substance Abuse
• Special Considerations for Violent Patients

Acute Crisis

• Sexual Assault
• Domestic Violence
• Suicidal Ideation & Risk

Substance Abuse Among Medical Patients: A Hidden Truth with JeanAnne Johnson Talbert, DHA, APRN-BC, FNP, PMHNP, AOCN, CARN-AP

Case Studies of Hidden Substance Use Disorders in Medical Patients: What Does it Look Like?

• In pregnant patients
• In general medical patients
• In surgical patients

Why is This Topic so Important? And so Challenging?

• Biostatistics
• Actual relevance in practice
• Morbidity and mortality – complications of substance use disorders

What Do These Substances Actually Do Within the Body?

• Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics principles
• Reinforcement
• Tolerance and cross-tolerance
• Physical dependence
• Conditioning
• Sensitization
• Pregnancy-related complications

What Substances Are We Talking About?

• Alcohol
• Sedative/Hypnotics
• Opioids
• Stimulants
• Dissociatives
• Inhalants
• Cannabinoids
• Anabolic steroids
• Club drugs
• Nicotine

Street Drugs and Terminology

• Interpreting patient language
• What drugs are they talking about?

Neurobiology of Substance Abuse: You Mean it’s Not a Choice?

• Neurobiology and anatomy of the normal brain
• Substance abuse as a brain disease
• Genetic and environmental influences

Mental Illness and Substance Abuse “Dual Diagnosis”

• Co-occurring illnesses
• Traits and theories surrounding the two

Screening and Assessment Techniques

• Effective questionnaires to screen for substance use
• Techniques to promote open and honest communication from the patient
• Working with the pregnant patient who uses substances
• Assessing your own biases – and how to not let them interfere with your work

The Patient with an Underlying Substance Use Disorder: Withdrawal Symptoms & Emergency Treatments

• Anticipation/prevention of withdrawal symptoms
• Withdrawal protocols
• Medications to treat withdrawal symptoms
• Emergency treatments
• Treatment of the newborn following exposure to substances
• Safety for patients/family/staff
• Effective pain management
• Motivational interviewing – Assessing how to refer the patient following discharge from the hospital