Delivery of Nurse Psychotherapy: Public Sector

Practicing psychotherapy as a nurse in public sectors may include government-funded facilities both in the community and in hospital. This chapter will give an overview of the dynamic role of the nurse psychotherapist in public-sector healthcare systems. The expectations, roles, and responsibilities of working within interdisciplinary teams will be outlined. The impact of government funding models will be introduced to better elucidate the extent of involvement for: (a) psychotherapeutic interventions, (b) individual and group sessions, (c) length of sessions and duration in care (d) additional responsibilities of coordinating care aspects within systems, (e) appropriate continuum of care and transitioning from one setting to another and (f) overall unique expectations and aspects in parameters of care. Components of care will be reviewed to better understand how to navigate care provisions in the public health system working in the role of the nurse psychotherapist including collaboration with family systems, legal aspects such as the Public Hospitals Act (1990), consent and capacity, Substitute Decision Maker, Power of Attorney, and the mental health act. Working within funding models will also be discussed.