As nurses take on a wider role in health care, the need for a framework to measure occupational standards is discussed by Marianne O’Hanlon and Deborah Andrews

Employers and professionals strive to develop and maintain a competent workforce despite perceptions of a theory-practice gap. Nursing is essentially a practice discipline that is eclectic in nature. Nursing roles overlap with those of a wide variety of other health care professionals and despite claims to the uniqueness of nursing, there has been a lack of clarity surrounding what constitutes this uniqueness. Moves to expand nursing practice into areas traditionally the province of junior doctors, or other professionals, have further complicated this issue, particularly when expanded roles focus on technical skills.