The role of the clinical forensic nurse in critical care.

Forensic nursing deals with the population of people whose lives have been affected by societal violence. The clinical forensic nurse (CFN) is seen as a means of coping with the resultant increased complexity of nursing practice, society, and the law. Critical care areas are clinical forensic domains where the CFN addresses the needs of living forensic patients through activities involving physical and non-physical evidence collection, crisis intervention, and documentation. Within a health care team, the CFN enhances patient care management, resulting in clinical service, legal order, and forensic protocol.