The role of nurse managers at all levels is the subject of much debate in Australia.

It has been argued that their role is not essential and increasingly new organisational structures are being implemented which do not include nurse managers.

This paper describes reasons why nurses, who are mainly female, face conflict when making the transition to the role of manager in the male dominated health care system of today.

It argues that the values which nurses are able to bring to these positions are those increasingly valued by the communuity they serve.

It is not nurses who should change, but the values held by the organisations in which they are employed if society's needs are to be well served.