Difficult Staff Situations Karen was employed in a community psychiatric hospital, on the night shift. Karen had worked every shift at the hospital depending on the family's needs. Karen was well-liked and respected because she was a hard worker who didn't complain. Psychiatric hospitals must admit anyone who causes harm to themselves or others, no matter how full, or find them a bed elsewhere. Many times in the day lounge area patients would sleep on the coach, chairs and floor. The hospital was never staffed for early admissions and there were always admissions, this resulted in increased staff to staff ratios and safety becoming a major issue (Bronn 2010). The shortage of nurses contributes to overwork, fatigue and errors. Having worked many times as a nursing home supervisor, this nurse knew that there were not enough nurses around and admissions should not be considered, but all discharges should be considered to reduce staffing needs and support staff numbers on the card. The hospital was often understaffed, it was difficult to get nurses to work, especially young ones, data shows that young nurses are not attracted to psychiatric nursing and this may be the cause of a shortage of psychiatric nurses (Seed , Torkelson, Annatour 2010 ). Usual staffing patterns are 4 night staff for 42 patients, a nurse director (RN) and a mental health technician (MHT) for each of the 2 parties, each party sharing the same nursing station. This night there were only 1 MHT and 2 RN. The night nurse's duties are admissions, chart review, including making sure every order in the last 24 hours has been transcribed correctly, executed correctly and documented. The night nurse also had to copy Medicati...... middle of paper ...... te: A 30 month review of the emergency room. Emergency Medicine Australasia, 20, 521. doi: 10.1111/j.1742-6723.2008.01140.xSeed, S.M., Torkelson J.D., Annatour R., (2010). The role of the hospital psychiatric nurse and its effect on job satisfaction. Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 31, 160. doi: 10.3109/01612840903168729Seed, S.M., Torkelson J.D., Annatour R., (2010). The role of the hospital psychiatric nurse and its effect on job satisfaction. Mental Health Nursing Issues, 31, 161. DOI: 10.3109/01612840903168729Souder, E., O'Sullivan, P., (2003). Disruptive behaviors of the elderly in institutional settings. Gerontological Nursing, 29, (8) 31. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=17&hid=111&sid=a7dccb27-7a16-469f-b7ef-24717bacd3ef%40sessionmgr15&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZ zY2 9wZT1zaXRl#db=c8h&AN=2003139601