Scenario:
Jean Louis Pierre is a 20 year old business major at a large university. His family and friends have noticed increasingly bizarre behaviors over the past several months. On many occasions they’ve overheard him whispering in an agitated voice, even though there is no one nearby. Lately, he has refused to answer or make calls on his cell phone, claiming that if he does it will activate a deadly chip that was implanted in his brain by Vodou priests.
Based on this scenario, respond to the following prompts:
- Which condition does the psychiatric NP associate with these patient behaviors? What do you know about the etiology of this disorder?
- What are positive symptoms of schizophrenia? What are negative symptoms of schizophrenia? What is the difference between Brief Psychotic Disorder, Schizophreniform, and Schizoaffective disorder?
- What treatment options will you offer this patient and why? (Provide non-pharmacological and pharmacological interventions, including nursing interventions as well as cultural considerations among Haitian populations with psychiatric conditions)
- What do you know about the mechanism of action of anti-psychotic medications? What labs should you order prior to or during the course of treatment for patients on this class of medication and why? What is the metabolic syndrome and how is it relevant to this case?
