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CPD courses for Mental Health Nurses

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Why do Mental Health Nurses need CPD?

CPD Guide for Mental Health Nurses


A mental health nurse is a registered nurse who specialises in the care of patients with mental health issues, including assessment, diagnosis, treatment, medication management and therapeutic interventions. They work in various settings such as hospitals, clinics, long-term care facilities and community health centres, and visit people’s homes in the community. They collaborate with other healthcare professionals to provide comprehensive care for their patients.

A mental health nurse may support their patients by conducting assessments, creating treatment plans, administering medication, providing therapy, offering emotional support, and educating patients and their families on coping strategies and resources available to them.

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What CPD courses do Mental Health Nurses need?

Mental health nurses will work with people from all walks of life who may be experiencing varying levels of poor mental health. This requires a lot of ongoing knowledge to ensure that they are up to date with different mental health conditions and best practices for supporting patients to reduce their symptoms and live healthily. We have a range of CPD courses that can support mental health nurses – we have listed some of these below.

 Understanding Eating Disorders – in this course you will learn what an eating disorder is, as well as how to help people who may have an eating disorder. Covering all the major eating disorders such as Anorexia, Bulimia and Binge Eating Disorder (BED), the course is perfect to help people fully understand how this type of mental issue can impact people.

 Administering Medication – understanding how to correctly administer medication is essential for anyone working in care. This course teaches the basics of storing, administering and disposing of medication and the legislation behind this. Various types of medication and methods of administration are also covered.

 Anxiety Awareness – in this course we will study various triggers of anxiety and look into how these can lead to panic attacks. Situations will be explained and the causes of anxiety explained. Finally, the course covers methods of overcoming anxiety and activities which can be done to help anxiety.

 Bipolar Disorder Awareness – this course seeks to inform you of what this mental illness is and how it affects sufferers and those around them. The symptoms of bipolar will be explained as well as successful techniques to deal with both manic and depressive episodes.

 Borderline Personality Disorder – in this course you will learn the signs and symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder. Common myths will be dispelled and you will gain a greater understanding of how to support someone with the disorder. You will also cover the combination of factors that cause Borderline Personality Disorder, and explore how brain development, family genes, brain chemicals and environmental factors can all contribute to this disorder.

 CBT Awareness – you will learn a lot about the theoretical background of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and about the CBT model. You will have the chance to touch on the history of CBT and on how this model was created, as well as gain a detailed overview of how the principles of CBT can be applied to people of different ages, or with different mental health diagnoses.

 Children’s Mental Health – this course covers everything that you need to know about the mental health of young people. The course includes the mental health spectrum, and you will explore the risk factors that can influence the onset of mental health difficulties in children.

 Dementia Awareness – this course will cover everything that you need to know about dementia from diagnosis to ongoing care. Through the units we will go into detail about what dementia is and what the effects can be for the person living with dementia, carers, family and friends. Our Dementia Awareness course will also cover the care that can be provided for people living with dementia and will look in depth at a person-centred approach and how this can help people living with dementia to still maintain a good quality of life.

 Depression Awareness – depression is one of the most common mental health disorders in the world and yet not a lot of people really understand what it is. This course aims to improve the knowledge of students and raise their awareness of how to spot signs of depression and how to help someone who is depressed.

 Mental Capacity Act – the Mental Capacity Act aims to support people who may lack capacity to understand situations. In the course we will look at the five key principles of the Mental Capacity Act to ensure you have a strong knowledge of how and when to make a decision on someone’s behalf. Working in a person-centred manner will be at the heart of all you do in a care role and this will be incorporated into the course materials. The link between the MCA and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards will also be covered.

 Mental Health Act – the Mental Health Act is the main piece of legislation that outlines the assessments and rights of people with mental health issues. It covers the rights of individuals who have been detained under the MHA as well as their families’ rights. The course covers all aspects of the Mental Health Act including Mental Health Tribunals. This means that, upon completion, students have a much deeper knowledge of the legislation underpinning mental health to use in their professional careers.

 OCD Awareness – in this course you will consider the different possible causes of OCD and cover in detail the different ‘types’ or ‘categories’ of OCD that someone may fall into, which will depend on the types of behaviours that come about because of intrusive thoughts.

 Postnatal Depression – postnatal depression impacts around 1 in 10 women at some point in the 12 months after giving birth. This course gives an in-depth look into what postnatal depression is and what signs are often shown in women who experience it.

 Schizophrenia – schizophrenia has several different components which make it extremely serious and this course will help you to spot these symptoms and help a person seek appropriate treatment. The course comes with full certification and covers a number of medical interventions as well as methods to manage schizophrenia.

 Self-Harming Awareness – this course will provide you with more awareness in relation to self-harm, as we’ll explore what self-harm is and its causes. We’ll also explore myths, who is at risk of self-harming and the types of self-harm, as well as look at how a person who self-harms can be helped, supported and treated.

 Suicide awareness – in this course you will explore the five elements of a suicidal mind, as well as explore risk factors and how you can support someone who is suffering. You will increase your awareness of supporting someone with suicide by looking at how they might feel, the right things to say and the impacts this has on the person, friends, family and colleagues.

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A guide to CPD for Mental Health Nurses

To become a mental health nurse, you typically need to have a degree in nursing that is approved by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). Additionally, you will need to complete a period of supervised clinical practice and pass NMC registration. Some employers may also require additional training or qualifications in specific areas of mental health nursing. Some of the qualities required to become a mental health nurse include empathy, patience, strong communication skills, critical thinking ability, good judgement, and the ability to work well under pressure. Additionally, mental health nurses should have a strong knowledge of mental health disorders and treatments, as well as an understanding of how to provide support and care for individuals who are struggling with mental health issues.

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is crucial for a mental health nurse because it helps them stay up to date with the latest developments and advances in their field. It improves their knowledge and skills to provide better care for their patients. CPD also helps mental health nurses meet their professional obligations and requirements, such as maintaining their registration and meeting regulatory standards. The NMC requires all registered nurses to participate in CPD to ensure they maintain their knowledge and skills and keep up to date with the latest practices and developments in their field.

CPD certificates

There are multiple courses that are well suited to a mental health nurse on our website, and all of them have the relevant accreditation to ensure that you are learning knowledge that is up to date and in line with the NMC requirements. Once you have successfully completed your chosen course, you will have immediate access to your CPD certificate. This will be available for you to download to save on your computer (and you can also print a hard copy off for your records). Alternatively, we can post a copy of your CPD certificate to your home address.

Logging CPD hours 

The NMC requires mental health nurses to complete a minimum of 35 hours of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) per year. To help you meet this, you can log the number of hours that you spend on your CPD courses to report back to the NMC. As well as CPD courses, there are other CPD training activities that you can log the hours for to count towards your overall CPD training hours.

Keeping evidence 

Your CPD certificate and logged CPD hours can all count towards evidencing your CPD. This can act as proof of the different types of CPD activities that you have completed.

As well as CPD courses, there are other CPD activities that you could embark on such as:

  •  Job shadowing managers or colleagues.
  •  Attending conferences.
  •  Completing independent research.
  •  Attending workshops.
  •  Listening to podcasts.
  •  Working with a mentor.

Renewing CPD certificates

The industry of nursing is constantly under review as new developments, legislation and guidance are published. To keep up with this, as a mental health nurse, you should renew your CPD certificates at least every two years. This will ensure that you are working with the most up-to-date knowledge to help keep your patients safe and provide the best care. It is easy to renew your CPD certificates with CPD Online College; you can simply complete a refresher of your CPD course.

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