A patient with a mental disability on a standard hospital ward.

This bachelor thesis deals with specifics of nursing care of patient with mental disability on a standard hospital ward. The thesis is divided into theoretical part where the basic information about mental disability are described including nursing care. The analytical part is aimed on experiences and knowledge of nurses who are caring of this patients and the other aspects which influence nursing care. The aim of the bachelor thesis is find out possible problems which occur during the hospitalization. Qualitative research using semi-structured interviews was selected for the analytical part. It was supplemented by direct, hide, participant observation. Ten nurses working at different standard wards in different hospitals were intentionaly selected for the research. The given interviews were processed by the open coding technique using pencil and paper. 7 categories and some subcategories were created and were further elaborated according to their specialization. Observation was performed on the Internal Department in one South Bohemian hospital. Seven nurses were observed. The analysis of observation was made by describing the individual record sheets and the situations and their comparison. The research shows that nursing care of patients with mental disability is difficult and have to be individualized. The most common problems in these patients are impaired adaptability, self-care deficit, disturbed verbal communication, incontinence, the risk of a violence and impaired social interactions. Nurses encounter all degrees of mental disability. The grade of mental disability is one of the aspects that greatly affects nursing care. Quality communication and sufficient patient information are essential for proper nursing care. The results of this bachelor thesis could be used for nurses or nursing students. The results can serve as an information material for anyone who wants to learn more about mentally handicapped patients