Comparing the Obvious: Interactional Characteristics of Staff in Acute Mental Health Nursing and Forensic Psychiatric Nursing

This article reports on and compares two separate studies of the interactional characteristics of forensic mental health staff and acute mental health staff as they interact with inpatients, respectively. Both studies were conducted using participant observation, along with informal and formal interviews. Findings show that both acute and forensic mental health nursing practice is characterized by two overriding themes; ‘trust and relationship-enabling care’ and ‘behavior and perception-corrective care.’ The comparison of the two studies shows no major differences in the characteristics of staff interactions with patients or in the overall meanings ascribed by staff in the different practice settings.