The Pediatric Mental Health Specialist: Role Delineation

Advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) specialties build on regulated role and population competencies and add expertise in a discrete area of practice. The Consensus Model speaks to the need for the nursing profession to create mechanisms that validate APRN competencies in new specialty areas that emerge from patients’ health care needs. The Pediatric Nursing Certification Board conducted a role-delineation study to examine the specialty area of pediatric primary care mental health. The result is a new certification and examination that validate knowledge, skills, and expertise for the role of the pediatric mental health specialist.