Do nurses see eye to eye on specialization? A look at the past, present, and future of the development of...

1. Specialization in nursing is a complex topic that has significance for how nursing is practiced, how services are delivered, what research is done, and what educational programs are offered. 2. The movement toward specialization is driven by a genuine concern for the quality of care, a desire on the part of individual nurses for recognition of their knowledge and expertise, a psychological as well as an economic need, and a profession-wide pursuit of status and recognition. 3. The need for an identified framework or classification system for the orderly development of specialization in nursing is essential and urgent. The situation in the United States gives a picture of the fragmentation, duplication, and disorder created by the lack of a framework. The identification of a framework would facilitate and expedite the orderly development of specialization.