Abstract Background Cardiovascular diseases represent a significant health burden in China, demanding highly skilled cardiovascular specialist nurses. However, the experiences of cardiovascular specialist nurses during the role transition period of clinical practice training remain underexplored. This qualitative research seeks to illuminate their unique journey and challenges during this pivotal period. Methods This study was using phenomenological approach where an in-depth interview with 16 cardiovascular specialist nurses was conducted. The participants were cardiovascular specialist nurses who had completed the clinical practice training of the training course for cardiovascular specialist nurses in a third-level hospital in China. Data saturation was reached after interviewing 16 participants. Colaizzi’s seven steps and NVivo software were used for data analysis. Results Through the analysis of the interview materials, the positive and negative experiences of cardiovascular specialist nurses in clinical practice were extracted. Conclusion The clinical practice training for cardiovascular specialist nurses can enhance their abilities in theory, practice, and scientific research. However, to improve the effectiveness of this training, the training methods should be refined and updated, and the direction of career development should be further clarified.
Wang et al. (2025) studied this question.