Psychiatric clinical nurse specialists (CNSs) were first introduced in 1954 by Hildegard Peplau as valuable contributors to the care of the chronically mentally ill (Spray, 1999; Wheeler, 2004). Peplau demonstrated that the therapeutic nurse-patient relationship shaped treatment outcomes. Then, during the years following mental health reform and deinstitutionalization, a golden opportunity arose for psychiatric CNSs to further their contribution in the community care of these patients.
