Mental Health (Psychiatric) nurses support people experiencing mental illnesses and / or mental distress. Mental Health Nurses work collaboratively with the person and their family to promote independence and recovery, fostering empowerment and providing support.
Work Environment
This occupation is typically found in the following Career Sector(s):
Videos & Interviews
Videos on the Web
- Mental Health Nurse- from: Youtube Search
- Psychiatric Technician- from: YouTube Video
Working Life
Mental Health Nursing is a rewarding career which offers the opportunity to support and work with people from diverse backgrounds. Mental health nurses work with adults, adolescents and children across a variety of settings.
Mental Health nurses work collaboratively with individuals experiencing mental illness or distress and family members to develop and deliver individualised, strengths based, recovery focused plans of care and promote and support self-management of mental illness and wellbeing.
On completion of a four year BSc Degree in Mental Health Nursing, you will be eligible to apply to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI) as a Registered Psychiatric Nurse (RPN). During academic and clinical training, student mental health nurses will be supervised and supported to develop the skills, clinical and professional knowledge required to provide high quality, evidenced based nursing care to people experiencing mental illness and / or mental distress.
During training student mental health nurses will learn how to develop communication, observation and assessment skills to enable them to conduct a holistic assessment of the needs of people attending mental health services.
On completion of this degree you will:
- Become a highly educated healthcare professional with an Honours Degree qualification.
- You will have a career for life with numerous opportunities for employment, promotion and further education.
- Learn critical thinking and problem solving skills to support people experiencing changes in their mental health status.
- Obtain the knowledge and competencies required to provide high quality, evidence based nursing care to people experiencing mental illness.
- Gain an understanding of the ethical principles and legal frameworks that govern the provision of mental health services in Ireland.
- Have the skills to help others to optimise their own health and wellbeing, through assessment, planning, implementing and evaluating appropriate physical and psychological nursing interventions.
Where Will I Work?
Once qualified, you will have the choice to work in a variety of Mental Healthcare settings including:
- Acute Hospitals
- Residential, Rehab and Recovery setting
- Primary Care centres
- Day Care centres
- Day Hospital
- Community clinics
- Home Care Team
Specialised mental health care is provided in areas such as:
- Community Mental Health Teams (General Adult)
- Adult Acute Inpatient Care
- Psychiatry of Later Life (POLL)
- Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS)
- National Forensic Mental Health Services (NFMHS)
- Early Intervention in Psychosis (EIP) Teams
- Perinatal Mental Health Services
- Liaison Psychiatry Team
- Dual diagnosis of mental illness and Intellectual disability
- Dual diagnosis of mental illness and Addictions
- Suicide Crisis Assessment Services
The HSE is the biggest employer in Ireland for this occupation. Further information from the HSE on the duties and skills for this occupation can be found here.
Qualities - Mental Health Nurse
The values of nursing are: care, compassion, commitment and student mental health nurses will learn these and apply them to their everyday nursing practice. Student mental health nurses will learn and promote the values of recovery, collaboration, independence and empowerment as these are intrinsic to mental health.
As a mental health nurse you will be part of a multi-disciplinary team with other professionals such as psychiatrists, psychologists, occupational therapists, social workers, cognitive behavioural therapists, addiction counsellors, dieticians and other health and social care professionals. You will also work closely with families and carers.
If you have some of the personal qualities outlined below then this is an excellent career choice for you:
- Good communication and interpersonal skills
- A good listener
- Emotional intelligence
- Patience
- Empathy and self-awareness
- A caring and kind attitude
- An interest in meeting people from different backgrounds
Skills and competencies that you will develop during your training:
- Assessment skills
- Clinical and professional knowledge and competencies relevant to mental and physical health
- Clinical nursing skills relevant to mental health care
- The ability to assess, plan, implement and evaluate individual plans of care
- The ability to assess potentially escalating situations and implement de-escalation skills in a calm and professional manner
- Risk assessment and safety planning skills
- Strong organisational and critical thinking skills, which support informed decision-making
- Excellent communication skills
- The capacity to engage with service users, their families and supporters
- The ability to collaborate with other members of the multidisciplinary team to plan, deliver and evaluate care
- Problem solving and decision making skills
- Medication management skills
- Infection control skills
- The ability to deliver education sessions to individuals and families about mental illness and management strategies and treatments for same
- The ability to respond to emergency situations professionally
- A commitment to continued professional development
- A commitment to providing a quality service
- Research skills
- Leadership skills
Interests - Mental Health Nurse
This occupation is typically suited for people with the following Career Interests:
Social
The Social person's interests focus on interacting with the people in their environment. In all cases, the Social person enjoys the personal contact with other people in preference to the impersonal dealings with things, data and ideas found in other groups.
Many will seek out positions where there is direct contact with the public in some advisory role, whether a receptionist or a counsellor. Social people are motivated by an interest in different types of people and like diversity in their work environments. Many are drawn towards careers in the caring professions and social welfare area, whilst others prefer teaching and other 'informing' roles.
Investigative
The Investigative person will usually find a particular area of science to be of interest. They are inclined toward intellectual and analytical activities and enjoy observation and theory. They may prefer thought to action, and enjoy the challenge of solving problems with sophiscticated technology. These types prefer mentally stimulating environments and often pay close attention to developments in their chosen field.
Administrative
Administrative people are interested in work that offers security and a sense of being part of a larger process. They may be at their most productive under supervisors who give clear guidelines and while performing routine tasks in a methodical and reliable way.
They tend to enjoy clerical and most forms of office work, where they perform essential administrative duties. They often form the backbone of large and small organisations alike. They may enjoy being in charge of office filing systems, and using computers and other office equipment to keep things running smoothly. They usually like routine work hours and prefer comfortable indoor workplaces.
Entry / Progression - Mental Health Nurse
There are two pathways to becoming a Mental Health/ Psychiatric nurse in Ireland:
The Pre-registration route-A four-year Bachelor of Science (Mental Health) following which you register on the Psychiatric Nursing Division of the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI) register.
The Post-registration route-This 1 year Higher Diploma in Mental Health is open to applicants who already have a nursing qualification.
Direct entry Mental Health/ Psychiatric Nursing is available in:
- Atlantic Technical University, Donegal
- Atlantic Technical University, Galway-Mayo
- Dublin City University
- Dundalk Institute of Technology
- Munster Technical University
- South East Technical University
- Technical University of the Shannon
- Trinity College Dublin
- University College Cork
- University College Dublin
- University of Galway
- University of Limerick
Go to NMBI Careers in Nursing and Midwifery for further information on how to train and register as a mental health nurse including:
- Programme: type, purpose, structure and competencies.
- Making an application: including CAO application, Higher Education Access Route (HEAR), Disability Access Route to Education (DARE), allowances and grants.
- Clinical and theoretical components of the pre-reg programme
- Entry requirements: health requirements, Garda Vetting, English competency, non-EU applications. Standard and Mature applications.
Post registration courses for mental health nurses include postgraduate and masters programmes in areas relevant to mental health, nursing, leadership, education, advanced practice and prescribing.
Entry requirements for these courses can vary depending on where and how you would like to study, so it is important to check with the particular college.
Application Information from the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland
Further Education & Training Entry Pathways A number of courses are available throughout the country that focus on learning and skills that may be useful for this career. The examples and links below may guide you in your research.
Further Education (FET) Further Education & Training (FET) Courses are delivered by local ETBs, ranging in duration from several weeks up to 20 months. Courses are designed to meet the labour market needs and often include a large element of work experience. Example search terms include: nursing studies, healthcare support, community and health services, anatomy and physiology, human growth and development, biology.
PLC courses are full-time courses, one or two year’s duration, with awards at Level 5 and 6 on the NFQ. They are offered nationally in Schools and Colleges of Further Education. Certain Specific QQI Level 5 Certificate Programmes can provide links to Nursing Degree Programmes.
Nursing and Midwifery Brochure - How do I get in?
Pay & Salary - Mental Health Nurse
Salary Range (thousands per year)* €35k - €83k
On completion of your programme your standard working week will be 37.5 hours on a shift pattern, which can include nights, early starts, evenings, weekends and bank holidays.
Other benefits include:
- Professional development and continuous learning
- Mentorship
- Employee Assistance Programme (Confidential and independent work-based support service available to all employees of the HSE including counselling, staff wellbeing and debriefing after critical incidents)
- Opportunities for career advancement
- Paid time off for holidays
- Employee recognition
- Rewards for years of service (increments)
Data Source(s):
HSE/ Indeed
Last Updated: March, 2025
Labour Market Updates - Mental Health Nurse
Note: The following information relates to occupations that include: Nurses and midwives.
This information has been derived from the Solas National Skills Bulletin (2025).
At over 80,000 persons employed, this is one of the largest occupations in the economy (after sales assistants). The annual average employment growth rate over the five-year period was above average, but employment declined by 1,800 persons since 2023. The majority of nurses employed were women and 31% of those employed were non-Irish citizens.
Despite the decline in employment, there was a relatively high volume of jobs advertised online (Eurostat/CEDEFOP) and of posts notified to DSP for nurses; difficult-to-fill vacancies in the Recruitment Agency Survey included for staff nurses and nurse managers. The high volume of recent job hires and employment permits (the highest number across all occupations), with no employment growth suggests that a significant level of job roles filled were most likely replacing those who had exited the occupation.
The number of student enrolments across HEA funded institutions for level 8 honours degree courses in nursing and midwifery was steady at around 7,600 in 2021/22 and 2022/23, although increasing from 7,000 enrolments in 2018/19 (HEA). Along with increasing the number of training places for nurses, the government are committed to increasing the number of Advance Nurse Practitioners and the expansion of other services will increase the demand for nurses. The ESRI report detailed above, also highlights the need for increased general practitioner nurses to meet the needs of a growing population.
Demand and shortages of nurses is expected to persist, particularly if issues with retention continue.
Skills shortage:
Nurses
Useful Contacts - Mental Health Nurse
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PNA Psychiatric Nurses Association
- Monread North, Co. Kildare
- 045 852300
- Click Here
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Health Service Executive (HSE)
- Dr Steevens' Hospital, Steevens Lane, Dublin, 8
- 041 685 0300
- Click Here
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Office of the Nursing and Midwifery Services Director, HSE Dr Steevens’ Hospital
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Nursing & Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI)
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Regional Nursing and Midwifery Planning & Development Units
