Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner, DNP

PMHNP Program Overview

Make a lasting impact in one of the most vital and rapidly growing fields in health care. As a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP), you’ll be on the front lines of transforming lives—offering expert, compassionate care to individuals across the lifespan. At the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), our nationally recognized PMHNP DNP program equips you with the skills, confidence, and clinical experience to lead in this essential specialty.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the nurse practitioner role is expected to grow by 45% through 2029—one of the highest rates in the country. Upon graduation, you’ll be eligible to sit for board certification through the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) or the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP).

The Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Role

As a PMHNP, you will assess, diagnose, and treat the mental health needs of patients. Treating mental health conditions can involve numerous interventions – giving PMHNPs the option to truly specialize in their field.

• Focus on children, adolescents, adults, or all age groups
• Provide psychotherapy, medication management, or a combination of both
• Work in hospitals, private practices, specialty clinics, schools, telehealth, or community health settings
• Specialize in areas like reproductive psychiatry, trauma recovery, addiction treatment, or developmental disorders
• A specialized focus on relationship-building makes this a unique and rewarding specialty.

You will often be seen as an educator – advancing recognition of mental health as a fundamental component of an individual’s well-being and assisting in health care reform and policy development.

Why Choose MUSC

Our program goes beyond textbooks. You’ll be immersed in rich, real-world experiences and learn from faculty who are passionate about mentoring the next generation of mental health leaders.

Track Highlights

• Learn to treat the whole person, not just the diagnosis through a holistic, integrated framework.
• Our curriculum offers specialized training in psychiatric medication management as well as psychotherapy training opportunities in modalities including trauma focused therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, motivational interviewing and Creating Opportunities for Personal Empowerment (COPE).
• Integrated curriculum with an interprofessional learning environment that enables you to learn about a variety of different disciplines and specialty areas such as telemedicine, primary care, school based care, substance use disorders and neuropsychiatric disorders.
• Three education courses are available for a total of 9 credits may be added to your plan of study. Completion of these courses provides qualification for the Certified Nurse Educator Exam.

PMHNP Clinical Experience

Clinical training at MUSC is where knowledge becomes practice and your future comes to life. We support your placement efforts whether you're in South Carolina or out of state, and our network continues to grow.

• PMHNP students are required to complete clinical hours at approved sites.

• Our current students are gaining hands-on experience in a wide range of clinical settings, including EMDR therapy, telehealth, school-based mental health, trauma recovery programs, substance use treatment centers, and opportunities to work with diverse and specialized populations.
  

• A portion of your clinical time may be spent conducting psychotherapy with a PMHNP, Psychologist, or Licensed Counselor.

Meet Your Lead Faculty, Dr. Hannah Robidoux

Hannah Robidoux
DNP, APRN, PMHNP-BC
Assistant Professor
Lead Faculty
robidouh@musc.edu

Dr. Hannah Robidoux is an Assistant Professor in the College of Nursing at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), where she teaches in both the Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) and Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) programs. She also serves as the lead faculty for the Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) track, guiding curriculum development, student mentorship, and strategic initiatives to strengthen the PMHNP program. She is passionate about both teaching and advancing mental health care, particularly for pediatric and adolescent populations.

Dr. Robidoux began her academic journey with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of South Carolina. She later earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing and Doctor of Nursing Practice from MUSC, specializing as a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner.

Her clinical career began in cardiac and medical-surgical hospital settings before transitioning to psychiatry, where she worked at a psychiatric residential treatment facility focused on children and adolescents. After completing her DNP, she completed a one-year fellowship at MUSC’s College of Nursing in collaboration with the Center for Telehealth, focusing on expanding behavioral health access for patients across the lifespan through telepsychiatry.

Dr. Robidoux is board-certified by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) as a PMHNP across the lifespan. She currently provides outpatient telehealth services to pediatric and adolescent patients through MUSC’s College of Nursing Next Steps Clinic in North Charleston, SC.

Her scholarly work focuses on early identification and intervention in infant and pediatric mental health, behavioral health equity, the impact of digital technology on child development and innovative approaches to training the future psychiatric workforce. She has published on topics such as maternal mental health, conceptualizing infant mental health in neonatal nursing, and the impact of screen time on children’s psychological development. She has presented nationally, most recently on integrating innovative interdisciplinary psychotherapy training for PMHNP students.

Dr. Robidoux is an active member of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association, The National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties and the Neuroscience Education Institute.

Since joining the College of Nursing faculty in 2022, Dr. Robidoux has remained committed to mentoring the next generation of nurse practitioners and fostering a collaborative, student-centered learning environment aimed at improving mental health outcomes for all.