The psychiatric clinical nurse specialist nurse practitioner: An example of a combined role

The purpose of this article is to provide an historical overview of the cli nical nurse specialist and nurse practitioner roles in psychiatric nursing. This article is written as a follow-up to that of Dyer, Hammill, Regan-Kub inski, Yurick, & Kobert, (1997), Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, 11, 2-11, in which a new paradigm for delivering comprehensive mental and general he alth services is conceptualized, i.e., the psychiatric-primary care nurse p ractitioner role. In this article an alternative model is presented: the ps ychiatric clinical nurse specialist/nurse practitioner role. Similarities a nd differences in the two roles are discussed. Copyright (C) 1998 by W.B. S aunders Company.