The nursing role in out-patient child and adolescent mental health services

Whilst nurses in the UK have been working in out-patient settings in the speciality of child, adolescent and family psychiatry for nearly 20 years, they are frequently unclear about what is their nursing contribution to the multidisciplinary team. This paper reports a qualitative study of perceptions of the nursing role in child and adolescent mental health teams of 11 clinicians from six different clinics. Whilst other disciplines were each able to define what was unique about their role, there was found to be no consensus as to what nurses brought by virtue of their nursing background. There is a risk that if nurses cannot develop a clearer rationale for their role, or be better able to articulate what they do in these teams, that role might be lost.