The Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner works as part of an integrated interdisciplinary team serving individuals with behavioral health problems within a primary health care setting. The Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner handles crisis intervention needs and maintains a daily schedule of individual and/or group therapeutic treatments. In addition to treating severe and persistent mental health issues (SPMI,) they assess and diagnose patients, provide psychotherapy and prescribe medication. This may include substance abuse and social skills interventions such as areas of domestic violence. In all cases, they work closely with primary care providers and other team members to develop specific behavioral change plans for patients that often experience complicated medical needs.
