Psychosis: Symptoms, Management Strategies, and Patient Care Plan

This report provides a comprehensive overview of psychosis, including its symptoms, such as hallucinations, delusions (specifically paranoid delusions), and disorganized speech. It explores the importance of interpersonal skills, particularly communication and listening, in managing patients with psychosis, emphasizing both verbal and nonverbal communication techniques. The report details how to respond to prescription issues, stressing the significance of medication adherence and patient education on the consequences of non-compliance. A care plan is outlined, encompassing direct patient communication, the use of distraction techniques, monitoring for symptoms, and strategies for addressing impaired verbal communication. The plan also highlights the importance of promoting healthy habits and open communication to optimize patient functioning and facilitate remission. The report references several scholarly articles to support its discussion of diagnosis, treatment, and care for individuals experiencing psychosis.

Running head: SYMPTOMS AND MANAGEMENT OF PSYCHOSIS
Symptoms and Management of Psychosis
Student’s Name
Institution Affiliation
Date of Submission

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Interpersonal skills to be used on Andrew
Interpersonal skills are the life skills we utilize each day when we impart and associate with
other individuals, both separately and in gatherings. In connection to Andrew the most vital
aptitudes that are required would be communication and listening abilities (May, 2013).
As a matter of importance for communication to happen there must be no less than two
individuals. Correspondence expertise can additionally be separated into verbal and nonverbal
communication. Verbal communication regularly requires simply slowing down when
addressing someone, this is because people might have the urge to quickly react to questions,
while the smart thing to do is staying silent and digesting what the other person has to say, thus
helping one answer back better. No one anticipates, or desires, a harsh attitude in important
conversations this is because being mindful of others is better and is considered more respectful.
A person who is considerate is normally taken more sincerely, This is because he has skills that a
person well conversant with mannerism of verbal communication ought to have such as, staying
calm, being attentive, courteous, attentive and being able to know what emotions a person is
going through thus adjusting his or her voice to significantly match his body language. Non-
verbal communication are actions or things people do subconsciously with or without their
knowledge and most of the times this is the communication that others read and make sense out
of such as, Facial expression, tone of voice, gestures and even the way you position yourself
physically in a room or among partners is continually uncovering your actual demeanor, for
better or in negative ways. In many instances people are not aware that they tend to say more
with nonverbal gestures like eye contact, gestures and facial expressions. Overall, adopting
effective communication skills is essential when dealing with patients in order to make them

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understand what causes the symptoms, how to ease the symptoms, and why they are taking
certain medication (Clearly, Hunt & Horsfall, 2015)
The other skill that would come in handy would be the listening skill which likewise is vital on
the grounds that it helps in enhancing the analysis of the patient issues and help in understanding
what and how the patient is influenced by his condition. It is critical to note that hearing and
listening are two different things in this case listening well enables one to ask good questions,
make better choices and impart all the more obviously on the grounds that you understand other
people perspective.
Symptoms and Management of Psychosis
Psychosis is a mental disorder usually characterized by an impaired relationship between
a person’s thoughts or perceptions and the reality (McEvoy, Freter, Merritt & Apperson, 2013).
Some of the major signs and symptoms of psychosis include hallucinations, delusions,
suspiciousness and disorganized speech. With both hallucinations and delusions, they appear to
be real to a person experiencing them yet they are not (Phelan & McCormack, 2016). Delusions
are false impressions, thoughts or beliefs strongly held by a person despite the fact that they are
contrary to reality or actual evidence (Garety, Kuipers, Fowler, Freeman & Bebbington, 2014).
In this case, the patient was experiencing a delusion of paranoia. A paranoid delusion is one
whereby a person shows persecutory delusions by claiming that people are plotting or conspiring
against them yet they are not (May, 2013). In this case, the patient says that transmitter chips
have been implanted in his brain so that people can monitor his thoughts. He also claims that
there are electrical supplies that are being moved in his house and that the lights outside his
apartment are being operated so that they can interfere with his thinking.

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Additionally, he is suspicious as he says that students are talking about his activities with
the lecturer so that he can get him into trouble. He also claims that there are different individuals
in the university who are ASIO spies. Clearly, all these false impressions exhibit a case of
paranoid delusion and suspiciousness whereby he believes that people are conspiring against
him. Further, the patient is experiencing hallucinations. A hallucination is a false sensory
experience that happens in the absence of an actual outside stimuli. In other words, a person sees,
hears, feels or smells things that are not really present. When someone is hallucinating, they see
things that do not exist or hear other people talking yet; this is not the case in actual reality
(Fischer, 2016). In this case, the patient said that he could hear other people talking about him,
yet there was nobody else in the room. Therefore, he was experiencing auditory hallucination by
hearing non-existent people talking. Besides this, the patient showed impaired verbal
communication whereby he relates some loosely connected and questionable narrations of
certain people in the university being ASIO spies. He also showed lack of emotion as he
maintained a flat and consistent monotone voice as he calmly sat in his seat throughout the entire
interview (Clearly, Hunt & Horsfall, 2015).
How to respond to the issue of prescription
Due to the nature of Andrews illness, good communication skills geared toward helping him
cope with the challenge of mental health is crucial and necessary for any health care giver, hence
it is my duty to explain to Andrew the nature of his illness in which in this case he has symptoms
of psychosis and how this symptoms are affecting his mental state and thus not allowing him to
perform well in his studies.

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In reference to verbal and nonverbal communication the use of friendly tone should come in
handy in showing empathy towards Andrew, who must understand that his medication which in
this case is risperidone 1mg nocte is important and is the one suitable in improving his well-
being, which include improved grades and his ability to socialize well without thinking that other
students and teachers are out against him. In this case I must assert the importance of taking
medication and also explain to him the consequences of not taking his medication; Andrew needs
to understand that instructions I give are a guidance and reassurance in order to teach him on
how to cope with his mental state. Moreover he needs to know that not taking his medication has
severe consequences, since research has made it clear that reduced observance with antipsychotic
medications escalates the danger of setback. Patients that don’t take their medication as required
have an average risk of relapse that is greater than that of patients that take their medication.
Andrew therefore must be in agreement with me should he not take his medication, he might
relapse and this may be more critical and life threatening to him and those around him, since one
of the major consequences of not taking his medication is an increased potential for assault and
dangerous behavior, especially during periods of psychosis. In this case, Andrews needs to
understand that relapse in psychotic case is common and many young men deal with the issue,
thus follow up meetings are encouraged by the health care giver and incase he has any question
he should not hesitate to ask any health care personnel. In this case, I will advise him to use the
drugs as prescribed in order to ease symptoms of psychosis (Clearly, Hunt & Horsfall, 2015)
Care Plan
As the general practitioner directed that the patient should be informed and monitored, I
would establish a care plan. First, I would address the patient directly and clearly with a

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professional but simple approach as I explain the GP’s diagnosis, treatments and medications. I
would explain this in a manner that helps the patient be fully aware of any intervention method I
will be carrying out so that they cannot feel that they are being tricked. Additionally, teaching the
patient how to engage in distraction techniques and reality-based activities that will help bring
them to reality would help reduce the hallucinations and delusions (Randle, 2016). I will monitor
the patient for various signs and symptoms that would suggest that they are experiencing a
hallucination. This could be seen by them talking to themselves or looking around (Hutchinson
& Jackson, 2013). I will encourage them to speak about their delusions and hallucinations and
engage them during the episodes while refraining from counseling them until they are over. It is
imperative that I help the patient to identify and deal with various feelings and triggers that cause
illusions and hallucinations. Also, it is important to avoid arguing with the patient about the
reality of their delusions or hallucinations. Instead, one should explain to them that others do not
share in their sensory perceptions or beliefs (Clearly, Hunt & Horsfall, 2015).
To deal with the impaired verbal communication, I would set aside some time for
consistent face-to-face interaction with them. During the interaction, it would be important that
the patient is informed where one does not comprehend whatever they are attempting to convey
(Olson, 2015). Where the patient shows lack of emotions to sensitive matters, I will try to
verbalize feelings and model various expressions of feelings. Talking about the patient’s favorite
activities, hobbies and personal interests would also help (Norman, Gibb, Dyer, Prentice,
Yelland, Cheng, & Edwards, 2016). Moreover, it would be important to identify areas of open
communication on matters of importance to the patient (Tait, Birshwood & Tower, 2015).
Lastly, I will encourage the patient to engage in healthy habits that will optimize functioning and

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keep them in remission. This includes maintaining medication regimen, regular sleep patterns
and self-care (Vickers & Linde, 2014).

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References
Clearly, M., Hunt, G. E., & Horsfall, J., (2015). Diagnosing psychosis. Issues in mental health
and nursing, 31(5), 331-335.
Fischer, S. A. (2016). Diagnosing and treating mental diorders: a concept analysis. Journal of
advanced nursing, 72(11), 2644-2653.
Garety, P. A., Kuipers, E., Fowler, D., Freeman, D., & Bebbington, P. E. (2014). A cognitive
model of the symptoms of psychosis. Psychological medicine, 31(2), 189-195.
Hutchinson, M, M., & Jackson, D. (2013). Signs and symptoms of psychosis: towards a more
critical interpretation. Nursing inquiry, 20(1), 11-22.
May, S. (2013). Mental disorders. In Handbook of mental care (pp. 231-245). Springer New
York.
McEvoy, J. P., Freter, S., Merritt, M., & Apperson, L. J. (2013). Insight about psychosis among
outpatients. Hospital and community psychiatry.
Norman, R. E., Gibb, M., Dyer, A., Prentice, J., Yelland, S., Cheng, Q., & Edwards, H. (2016).
Improved psychiatry care for patients with psychosis in Australia. International
psychiatry journal, 13(3), 303-316.
Olson, M. H. (2015). An introduction to mental disorders. Psychology Press.
Phelan, A., & McCormack, B. (2016). Exploring nursing expertise in caring for mental patients:
a mixed method study. Journal of advanced nursing, 72(10), 2524-2535.

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Randle, J., (2016). Nursing care plan for psychosis. Journal of advanced nursing, 43(4), 395-
401.
Tait, L., Birshwood, M., & Tower, P. (2015). Predicting engagement with services for psychosis:
insight, symptoms and recovery style. The Journal of Psychiatry, 182(2), 123-128.
Vickers, A. J., & Linde, K. (2014). Intervention for acute psychosis. Jama, 311(9), 955-956.