I am now midway through my first week of Winter Term. On Monday, my first day, I spent some hours with the ACT (Assertive Community Treatment) Team. As I learned a few days ago, the ACT model has a very specific makeup of personnel, including nurses, psychiatrists, case/social workers, and peer support people. The ACT model of care is an evidence-based practice that has existed since the 90s but was implemented only fairly recently in New Mexico. ACT exists primarily to benefit and treat those with severe mental illnesses who have high risk of hospitalization/inpatient treatment and homelessness. The doctor I worked with described it as “the structure of a hospital without the walls.” People in the ACT group (patients) get visited at least twice a week by an ACT team member, who deliver patients their medications, do assessments, and help them with tasks like grocery shopping, as well as conducting check-ins to ensure that patients are being supported in the ways they need. There are also several different types of therapies provided (mindfulness training, dialectical behavioral therapy, etc.), as well as various groups like a fitness group and a library group. I had only read a little bit about the ACT model prior to actually going in and shadowing the team, so in one day I learned a lot!
In the morning I got to see the meds room, where all the medications for patients are stored and organized, and I got to be part of the team meeting (along with two other interns, both medical residents. I am very young!!!). The hour-long meeting began with a two-minute mindfulness period, which I found helpful to calm my new-person jitters. During the meeting the team talked about the agenda for the day and went through any patient notes they had.
In the afternoon, I rode along with one of the team psychiatrists and a psychiatry resident on a few of her patient visits. I was a bit nervous going in, because I wasn’t sure what to expect. I have not interacted with many mentally ill people before, and I didn’t have a clear sense of what someone with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder would be like. I think there is a general lack of discussion and representation of mental illness in the media, and all too often portrayals of people with mental illnesses are inaccurate or stereotypical. I know that my associations of people with mental illness have been colored by stereotypes and media portrayals and are probably not accurate. Therefore, I found visiting some of the doctor’s patients really eye-opening. Just from one day of shadowing I think I developed a more nuanced image of people with mental illnesses. I’m sure this understanding will modify as I continue this shadowing experience over the course of the next three and a half weeks.
The rest of this first week I am spending observing various Telehealth clinics. Expect more content on that soon! That’s all for now!