Paul Rogers and Barry Topping-Morris give an overview of the development of clinical supervision for forensic mental health nurses working in a medium secure unit

Clinical supervision for nurses has become an integral aspect of health care delivery for today’s health care services. More and more key documents are demanding that nursing services incorporate , clinical supervision as an integral part of practice development (UKCC 1994a, DoH 1994). Forensic mental health nursing is a specialised activity, requiring a balance in providing a therapeutic environment and i maintaining security. Often the nurse will be expected to be an advocate to both the general public and the patient. This balance is not easy to achieve and can often present the nurse with stressful dilemmas. Tire need to ensure that treatment and rehabilitation in secure conditions last for the minimum necessary period often conflicts with the need to provide the continuing protection of tire public. Clinical supervision should aim to assist the nurse in objective decision making at all times.