Book excerpt: "Neuroscience nurses practice in a very complex and challenging environment, caring for equally complex patients with multiple needs. Therefore, the contemporary neuroscience nurse engages in high-level assessment, information processing, and decision making. This requires professional competency in not only the specialty of neuroscience nursing practice, but also in general nursing and interprofessional collaborative practice. Much of the care delivered is through teams, with the nurse being an integral team member. The complexities of team communications, coordination, continuity, and safety require new models of practice to achieve optimal outcomes"--