ABSTRACT
This chapter explains two major problems confronting psychiatric nurses, especially those who work with psycho- therapeutically oriented psychiatrists. One problem has been discussed: How does therapeutic nursing fit into the total treatment process? A second problem arises from the necessity for nurses to align their managerial and therapeutic functions. Yet nurses, and especially head nurses, have been given a mandate to maintain order upon the wards. Nurses therefore develop a vocabulary of blame and accusation to explain why things go wrong on the wards, frequently blaming the administrators and meanwhile feeling frustrated and angry. Nurses must be alert to the possibility of selecting the right authority, the right ally, and the right action in order to minimize emergencies or handle them effectively. Since many patients come directly to PPI without previous treatment by their physicians, the latter are freer to compliment the nurses.
