The visible and invisible fields that shape the future of the nursing care system

Nursing care systems, past and future, are shaped by issues, trends, and visions that are both visible and invisible. The founding of Nursing Administration Quarterly twenty-five years ago was a visionary response to identify contemporary issues and predict future trends effectively. The vision stemmed from the deep values and commitment about the role of nursing administration in the health care system. Likewise nurse administrators of the 21st century face the challenge of shaping continuity and change within a unique set of issues and trends that call for new visions. The issues and trends are only part of the fields, or nonphysical forces, that nurse administrators use to shape the future of nursing care systems. The focus of this article is to examine both visible and invisible forces for determining the future. Key issues and trends are looked at from the perspective of personal and professional values and commitments. The purpose of exploring this perspective is to stimulate thinking about strategies to create possible and plausible futures.