Psychiatric Assessment and Fundamentals Q 18
Nurse Monette recognizes that the focus of environmental (MILIEU) therapy is to:
A. Manipulate the environment to bring about positive changes in behavior.
B. Allow the client’s freedom to determine whether or not they will be involved in activities.
C. Role play life events to meet individual needs.
D. Use natural remedies rather than drugs to control behavior.
Correct Answer: A. Manipulate the environment to bring about positive changes in behavior
Environmental (MILIEU) therapy aims at having everything in the client’s surrounding area toward helping the client. Theories of MT commonly acknowledge the role of the environment as a setting in which therapeutic change happens. According to Dincin (1975), “a great deal has been written about the importance of the milieu and the environment.?The creation of a therapeutic atmosphere is one of [its] hallmarks” (p. 134).
Option B: Milieu therapy is a form of psychotherapy that involves the use of therapeutic communities. Patients join a group of around 30, for between 9 and 18 months. During their stay, patients are encouraged to take responsibility for themselves and the others within the unit, based upon a hierarchy of collective consequences.
Option C: In milieu therapy, you spend a significant amount of time in a home-like environment, interacting with other people as you conduct ordinary activities throughout the day. You may attend group or individual therapy sessions as part of your schedule. With this treatment approach, patients have daily responsibilities that contribute to the functioning of their environment. Many programs allow people to choose the work they do every day so they feel comfortable and productive. The idea is that these activities and responsibilities will become opportunities to look at, talk about, and change ways of thinking and acting that aren’t healthy.
Option D: In milieu therapy, power is distributed in a more egalitarian way. This shared authority approach allows everyone in the program to have a greater sense of agency and responsibility. That’s because the end goal is for everyone in the program to emerge with more confidence in their ability to handle stressors in the larger society.