Growth Overcoming Obstacles as a Clinical Nurse Educator: A Qualitative Study

Clinical nurse educators (CNEs), responsible for nursing education, have begun to address unresolved issues in nursing education overlooked by preceptorship. However, research on this topic is lacking in South Korea, despite the government's 2019 launch of the CNE support project. This study explored the role experience of CNE in South Korea, focusing on their role challenges and the process of overcoming them. Fifteen CNEs from tertiary or secondary general hospitals in South Korea participated in semi-structured, in-depth interviews conducted between August and December 2023. Interviews were recorded and transcribed for conventional content analysis. Four categories emerged: challenges in the role of CNE, personal strategies for growth as a CNE, external support systems for growth as a CNE, and role evolution and emerging challenges for CNEs. This study demonstrates previously unexplored CNE role experiences in South Korea and provides valuable recommendations for enhancing CNE support projects.