S.TRUEMAN PhD THESIS 2016

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Remote nurses reported good working relationships with psychiatrists and that they were very beneficial in caring for mental health patients (although often general medical officers or RFDS were the first to be contacted): We have a psychiatrist who is absolutely wonderful … we can ring him 24 hours a day basically. [T5, p. 17] Reciprocally, psychiatrists reported that the skills of remote nurses in handling mental health patients, in the circumstances of a lack of resources, were usually very good to excellent. They further reported that remote nurses tended to have low levels of confidence and feelings of competency in delivering mental healthcare. I say that to the remote area nurses—when they say, ‘Haven’t got the skills’, I say, ‘In fact you do because we all know the patient’s not well. (T24, p. 10) This is consistent with the remote nurses’ self-reported low levels of confidence in delivering mental healthcare: Not particularly confident … because I don’t have a great deal of mental health training … You sort of learn by trial and error… not particularly confident. [T4, p. 9] I believe that they [remote nurses] believe they lack confidence [in delivering mental healthcare]. [T6, p. 11] This is also consistent with remote nurses’ self-reported low levels of competence in delivering mental healthcare: I don’t think my assessment skills of mental health clients is particularly good. [T4, p. 9]