Nursing Mental Health: Case Study, Interventions, and Ethical Analysis

This case study examines the mental health of Chung, a 35-year-old male experiencing low mood and suicidal thoughts, and explores appropriate nursing interventions and ethical considerations. The analysis identifies Chung's poor health condition, characterized by sleeplessness, lack of confiden...Read More

Running Head: MENTAL HEALTH 0
Mental health
9/25/2018

MENTAL HEALTH 1
Question 1 (a)
In context to the case study, after visiting the Chung’s family, it has found that he has
been feeling low in mood, past six years, leading to a number of symptoms of poor health.
Health is a state of complete physical, mental, and social wellbeing. Therefore, with the case
of Chung, it can be analysed that he was in the poor state of physical, mental, social, and
emotional wellbeing. Identified symptoms included sleeplessness, usually waking up at 3am
in the morning showing submissive behaviour. In addition, lack of confidence, failing at work
led to the major impact on his safety as he developed thoughts of committing suicide. Thus,
the issue or urgent risk area is the poor health condition as Chung represented the symptoms
of low mood, which needs to be, resolved (Bruce et al., 2015).
Question 1 (b)
Nursing interventions with the case of Chung can be an approach to ensure
maintenance of safe environment. Developing a therapeutic relationship and recovery-based
language with the patient, will help in improving his health by identifying and understanding
patient’s behaviour. This can take place as a 30-minute exercise, engaging him in other
activities, helping him focus and gain confidence in his work and social relationships.
Building trust and sense of mutual understanding with the patient will help him recover with
positive outcomes. In addition, interventions such as undertaking self-harm/suicide risk
assessment will also play an effective role in improving his thought-process, and becoming
positive towards life. These interventions carried out by the nurse involve rationale (purpose)
to implement them. Rationale to follow recovery-based language in the approach is used as it
helps in understanding patient’s perspective towards life and stress (Segal, Williams &
Teasdale, 2018).
Question 2 (a)
With respect to the Chung’s health condition, safety issues of his life, there is an
identified mental concern or issues that affect the wellbeing of the patient. Suicide ideation
and feelings of hopelessness and worthless raised the safety concern which are the resulted
impacts of the low mood or anxiety, i.e. mental health concern. Chung represented the signs
of low-esteem or lack of self-confidence. He felt being worthless for undertaking the
responsibility of his family, losing interest in improving his life. Men and women both

MENTAL HEALTH 2
experience depression, and low mood or anxiety related problems during the course of their
life. Symptoms with both men and women may vary according to their lifestyle,
surroundings, and nature of the problems faced by them. Low mood or anxiety in males is
depicted by their loss of interest in work, family, and at times they tend to become aggressive
(Woods & Scott, 2016).
Question 2 (b)
Mental health concerns in men affect their state of wellbeing in the longer term;
therefore, interventions suitable must be implemented. Counselling the person with such
mental illness, may help improve the situation and health condition of the patient. As with
this case, an effective role of midwifery may help the person overcoming the sadness in his
life, and leading a positive life. Untreated depression leads to the risk of suicide, therefore
counselling the person understanding his problems and issues will help. Community nurse
can help the patient recover, from mental illness and issues. Rationale based on this
intervention included that counselling carried out as it assesses and analyses the person’s
problems in a more analytical approach and helps in finding solutions (Song & Lindquist,
2015).
Question 3
Nursing in mental health illness requires considering ethical, legal, and professional
concerns by the nurse. Building effective therapeutic alliance, there some issues such as
confidentiality of the patient’s information, which keeps their relationship safe and
establishes trust. The ethical concerns in nursing includes respecting the patients’ autonomy,
duty to act with beneficence, no maleficence and justice. Nurse must ensure about the needs
of the patient, while treatment as it represents their professionalism. With reference to the
mental health Act, if a patient is detained under mental health act need to be given urgent
treatment for their mental health disorder. Chung took overdose of the medications; therefore,
the rules for the detained patients are applicable with his case. Two ethical concerns in
nursing of mental health problems include management of the confidentiality of the sensitive
data, and following ethical guidelines in the treating the patient. Thus, nurses or midwifery
dealing with such patients must take care of some ethical issues and act accordingly, with due
diligence ( Urden, Stacy & Lough, 2017).

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References
Bruce, M. L., Raue, P. J., Reilly, C. F., Greenberg, R. L., Meyers, B. S., Banerjee, S. &
Rosas, V. H. (2015). Clinical effectiveness of integrating depression care management
into medicare home health: the Depression CAREPATH Randomized trial. JAMA
internal medicine, 175(1), 55-64.
Segal, Z. V., Williams, M. & Teasdale, J. D. (2018). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for
depression. United States: Guilford Publications.
Song, Y. & Lindquist, R. (2015). Effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction on
depression, anxiety, stress, and mindfulness in Korean nursing students. Nurse
education today, 35(1), 86-90.
Urden, L. D., Stacy, K. M., & Lough, M. E. (2017). Critical Care Nursing-E-Book:
Diagnosis and Management. United Kingdom: Elsevier Health Sciences.
Woods, H. C., & Scott, H. (2016).Sleepy-teens: social media use in adolescence is associated
with poor sleep quality, anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem. Journal of
Adolescence, 51, 41-49.