Quick answer
What does Dacha DeGruy do as a psychiatric nurse? Dacha DeGruy is a psychiatric nurse at START Corporation in New Orleans. As part of an Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) team, she conducts face-to-face assessments, monitors mental health symptoms, administers prescribed medications including long-acting injectable antipsychotics, watches for adverse reactions, and teaches clients about medication adherence and coping strategies.
Psychiatric Nurse at START Corporation
Dacha DeGruy has worked as a psychiatric nurse at START Corporation in New Orleans since October 2025. She provides community-based psychiatric nursing services as part of an Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) team.
Her work includes:
- Conducting face-to-face assessments and monitoring mental health symptoms
- Documenting client progress using SOAP notes
- Administering prescribed medications, including long-acting injectable antipsychotics, and monitoring for adverse reactions
- Educating clients on medication adherence, coping strategies, and psychiatric symptom management
- Coordinating with interdisciplinary team members on crisis intervention, follow-up care, and community resources
What Is an Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) Team?
Assertive Community Treatment is an evidence-based way of delivering mental health care in the community. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) describes ACT as services customized to each person’s needs, delivered by a team of practitioners, and available 24 hours a day. The goal is to help people stay out of the hospital and build skills for living in the community.
Instead of asking clients to come to a hospital or clinic for every service, ACT team members often go to them. A psychiatric nurse on the team brings nursing assessment and medication care into that model. For a fuller explanation, read what community-based psychiatric nursing is.
Source: SAMHSA, Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) Evidence-Based Practices KIT
Psychiatric Nursing at Beacon Behavioral Health Services
From October 2024 to September 2025, DeGruy worked as a psychiatric nurse at Beacon Behavioral Health Services in New Orleans. She gathered information from patients and families to support individualized treatment plans and documented patient information, service plans, treatment reports, and progress notes. She also educated patients on coping mechanisms and provided outreach, advocacy, rehabilitation, and crisis support.
Core Parts of Community Psychiatric Nursing
Assessment and symptom monitoring
Psychiatric nurses watch for changes in mood, thinking, sleep, behavior, and daily functioning. Regular face-to-face contact helps the team spot changes early.
Medication care
Some clients receive long-acting injectable medications, which are given at intervals of weeks or months instead of as daily pills. The nurse gives the prescribed injection and watches for side effects or adverse reactions afterward. Every dose goes through the same safety checks described in the rights of medication administration.
Documentation
Clear notes let every member of the team see what changed since the last visit. DeGruy documents progress using SOAP notes. Read what a SOAP note is and how nurses use it.
Education and coordination
Teaching clients about their medications and coping strategies supports recovery between visits. When a client needs more support, the nurse coordinates with the rest of the team on crisis intervention, follow-up care, and community resources.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does Dacha DeGruy work as a psychiatric nurse?
She works as a psychiatric nurse at START Corporation in New Orleans, Louisiana, on an Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) team.
What is a long-acting injectable antipsychotic?
It is a prescribed antipsychotic medication given as an injection that lasts for weeks or months, so the person does not need to take a daily pill for that medication. Only a prescriber can decide whether it is right for a specific person.
Did Dacha DeGruy work at Beacon Behavioral Health Services?
Yes. She worked as a psychiatric nurse at Beacon Behavioral Health Services in New Orleans from October 2024 to September 2025.