In 2011, the American Psychiatric Nurses Association (APNA) and the International Society of Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurses (ISPN) appointed a joint task force to begin the review and revision of Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing: Scope and Standards of Practice, published in 2007 by the American Nurses Association (ANA, 2007). The taskforce members were comprised of psychiatric-mental health nursing clinical administrators, staff nurses, nursing faculty, and psychiatric advanced practice registered nurses working in psychiatric facilities and the community. This taskforce convened in July 2011 to conduct an analysis of the existing document and begin crafting sections incorporating the results of the analysis. In accordance with ANA recommendations, this document reflects the template language of the most recent publication of ANA nursing standards, Nursing: Scope and Standards of Practice, Second Edition (ANA, 2010). In addition, the introduction has been revised to highlight the leadership role of psychiatric-mental health nurses in the transformation of the mental health system as outlined in Achieving the Promise, the President’s New Freedom Commission Report on Mental Health (United States Department of Health and Human Services, 2003) and the Institute of Medicine’s Report (IOM) The Future of Nursing (2010). The prevalence of mental health issues and psychiatric disorders across the age span, and the disparities in access to care and treatment among diverse groups attest to the critical role that psychiatricmental health (PMH) nursing must continue to play in meeting the goals for a healthy society. Safety issues for persons with psychiatric disorders and the nurses involved in the recovery processes of persons with mental disorders are major priorities for PMH nursing in an environment of fiscal constraints and disparities in reimbursement for mental health services. Development of this edition of Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing: Scope and Standards of Practice included a two-stage field review process: 1) review and feedback from the boards of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association and the International Society of Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing and 2) posting of the draft for public comment at www.ISPN-psych.org with links from the ANA website, www.nursingworld.org, and the APNA website, www. apna.org. Notice of the public comment period was distributed to nursing specialty organizations, state boards of nursing, nursing schools, faculty groups, x Psychiatric–Mental Health Nursing: Scope and Standards of Practice,  and state nurses associations. All groups were encouraged to disseminate notice of the postings to all of their members and other stakeholders. The feedback was carefully reviewed and integrated when appropriate