Introduction

Welcome to today's scenario. We will be using a virtual patient to explore some issues in mental health using therapeutic communication. The cases will work best for you if treat this virtual patient as you would a real patient. 

Because we want to give you practice in how you would raise various issues with the patient, we have used Turk Talk in a few areas. This is live text-based chat with a facilitator. You can type questions and responses into designated boxes.

When the facilitator is satisfied with your responses, you will be allowed to move onwards in the case. At each Turk Talk section, there is a Bypass link - this allows you to completely bypass the Turk Talk interaction. It is mostly for when a facilitator is not available. Remember that if you Bypass, you will not get credit for that section. 

In this scenario, learners will care for a patient who has unknowingly lived with cannabis-induced schizophrenia for roughly three years.

By the end of this scenario, participants will be able to:

Demonstrate reflective listening and therapeutic communication skills to assess the patient’s current mental status, short-term and long-term goals, relevant SEDoHs, and readiness for discharge using open-ended questions to elicit information using sensitive, non-judgemental language.

Implement patient-centred care through shared-decision making by maintaining patient autonomy and considering the patient’s unique preferences and expressed needs regarding his experience/condition to achieve optimal patient care.

Utilize interprofessional collaboration skills by reporting to a social worker using SBAR to communicate subjective observation data obtained from the interview to meet the shared goals of the patient.

Establish an understanding of the discharge process (housing, medications, community referrals) for homeless individuals and have an awareness of the resources/services available and considered appropriate for the patient.

Build a trusting, therapeutic relationship with the patient by validating their emotions, paraphrasing, maintaining professional boundaries, and promoting patient empowerment.

Have fun with the case!