Group Therapy Cons

963 Words4 Pages
For the past four years, I have been volunteering at Tri-County Community Mental Health Center, a private, psychiatric clinic with therapy in the morning for mentally ill elders, most of whom live in group homes. I have seen many nurses come and go, but no nurse’s work ethic could ever match that of the current head nurse, Sylvia Morris. To the doctor and the other nurses, Sylvia is a vital person on the staff, and without her, they believe the whole clinic would fall apart. I entered the clinic one Saturday morning and walked into a large, well-lit room, where therapy was being held. There, I found Sylvia pouring orange juice into plastic cups for the patients. In the next room, the patients were playing board games and laughing occasionally…show more content…
“Some of them come here and they sit in group therapy looking really depressed and they are unresponsive to the group activity. After I ask them about their family or life in general, their face immediately lights up. I know that I can make a difference in their day. They tell me a lot, and I do feel a connection to the patients. I do care about them. I don’t try to dehumanize them. A few of them remind me of my aunt or my cousin, and I know that what has happened to them can happen to anybody. Working in this field, you realize how fragile the mind is. You realize how quickly people can…show more content…
Dominic’s,” Sylvia explained. “A series of unfortunate events occurred, and I decided to become a nurse instead. I never actually chose this job. It was the only one that offered me a lot of benefits and a stable insurance, so I said, ‘Why not?’ I’ve been doing this ever since. I may even do this until I retire.” The doctor that she works for owns two clinics. The first clinic, Tri-County, is only for group therapy in the mornings. The other clinic is designed specifically for patients with depression and sleep problems. Sylvia goes to Tri-County in the mornings and in the late afternoons, she works alongside the doctor at the depression and sleep clinic. “I basically have two nursing jobs!” she said, laughing. By the time Sylvia had finished all the clinic notes and placed them in the patients’ charts, it was time for the patients to return to their group homes. We walked outside, helped the patients into the bus, waved goodbye, and told them that they did a wonderful job at therapy that day. While walking back, Sylvia said, “My whole job is centered around the patients and their progress. The nurses have to record the patients’ attitude and behavior during therapy. That’s the only way we know if they’re getting any
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