Mental Health Nursing Careers
BC Children's Hospital provides a comprehensive mental health program for children and youth who are experiencing severe mental and emotional distress or serious psychiatric symptoms.
About the program
Mental health services at BC Children's Hospital vary from emergency care to inpatient units, to specialized services such as the off-campus eating disorders programs offered through the Looking Glass Residence.
What we do
Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses work across the mental health program in various child and adolescent units and residential programs.
Specific services or units
- Adolescent Psychiatry Inpatient Unit: 10-bed unit providing psychiatric assessments and treatment initiation for adolescents aged 12-18
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Emergency (CAPE): 6-bed unit providing emergency psychiatric assessments and stabilization for children in crisis (up to age 16)
- Provincial Specialized Eating Disorders Program for children and adolescents: both outpatient and inpatient treatment for children up to age 18
- Eating Disorders Inpatient Unit: 10-bed unit providing eating disorder treatment and assessment
- Eating Disorder Day Treatment Program: 8-bed program providing eating disorder treatment
- Child Psychiatry Inpatient Unit: 10-bed unit providing day treatment psychiatric services for children under 12 years of age and their families/caregivers. It focuses on assessment, parent education/coaching and initiating treatment
- Looking Glass Residence: an inclusive eating disorder treatment program for 16 to 24-year-old male, female, transgender and culturally diverse individuals from across the province of BC. Looking Glass is in a residential setting 10 minutes away from BC Children’s Hospital. Its design is transitional, moving through individual readiness, intensive treatment and recovery maintenance. The Looking Glass philosophy is to provide healing, wellness and recovery-oriented treatment in a culturally inclusive, trauma-informed manner
Working here
A nurse receives a report from the previous shift and plans their day based on the patients’ goals and schedule.
Typical tasks include:
- Medication administration and assessment
- Mental status exams
- Supporting patients with the activities of daily living, and moving from one activity to another
Nurses work with a multi-disciplinary team to:
- Clarify diagnostics
- Implement interventions and assess efficacy
- Help parents understand their child’s diagnosis
- Coach parents about behavioural management
- Run groups
- Craft
- Go on outings
Depending on the needs of the unit or particular patient, the ratio of nursing to patients can range from 1:1 to 1:3 during the day and to 1:5 at night.
We offer many educational courses throughout orientation and ongoing. Opportunities include both unit-specific education and site-wide education, such as leadership and mentorship courses.