The term consultancy is used in many contexts. It has been applied
to advanced nursing practice roles such as clinical nurse specialist,
advanced nurse practitioner, nurse practitioner and other occupations.
This causes confusion in the healthcare setting as the word is often
used interchangeably between roles and has traditionally been
used in a medical context. In addition, the development of nurse
consultant posts has further compounded the uncertainty around
consultancy. However, regardless of the role holder, consultancy in
nursing is normally used in the context of a person in possession of
expertise. This article describes consultancy in nursing; identifying its
development, approaches, application and possibilities for the future