In the 21st century, the delivery of cancer care is facing unprecedented challenges, including an increasing number of cancer patients, a shortage of nursing personnel, a shift in care from in-patient to outpatient facilities, and new technologies requiring additional resources and education. The purpose of this critical qualitative study was to explore how nurses learn to transition into cancer nursing practice (CNP) in the workplace. The inquiry examined the contextual and learning factors that enhanced or impeded the nurses’ transition into diverse cancer settings. A comprehensive literature review was conducted in three areas: workplace identity and transitions; social learning theories and informal learning in nursing practice; and the context of cancerland, namely, cancer system, cancer patients’ experience, and cancer nursing as a specialty. Participants completed a preinterview questionnaire that determined whether they met the criteria and were representative of the phenomenon being studied. Telephone interviews were conducted with 15 nurses with more than 3 months and less than 2 years working in 1 of 4 cancer facilities in Ontario. An interpretive, phenomenological approach was used to formulate a description of the newly hired nurses’ lived experience. Three overarching themes emerged unique to CNP: (a) Getting In - nurses perceptions of their recruitment and selection into CNP; (b) Surviving In - nurses’ struggles learning CNP and the emotional strain of “being with” critically ill and dying patients; and (c) Staying In - factors that impacted the nurses’ decision to stay or leave, such as effective nursing leadership, quality of work life, and accessibility of supports (preceptors and mentors) and professional education. The findings will assist nursing leaders, educators, and preceptors when developing strategies to enhance the recruitment, orientation, and education of nurses into CNP. The review included a description of the ways in which the nurses perceived their new role, as well as the rewards and difficulties they encountered as they coped during their first few months of practice. Also included were descriptions of the ways in which the nurses learned to transition into the different cancer nursing subspecialties of in-patient; outpatient; chemotherapy; radiation therapy; and urban, rural, and remote settings.

In the 21st century, the delivery of cancer care is facing unprecedented challenges, including an increasing number of cancer patients, a shortage of nursing personnel, a shift in care from in-patient to outpatient facilities, and new technologies requiring additional resources and education. The purpose of this critical qualitative study was to explore how nurses learn to transition into cancer nursing practice (CNP) in the workplace. The inquiry examined the contextual and learning factors that enhanced or impeded the nurses’ transition into diverse cancer settings. A comprehensive literature review was conducted in three areas: workplace identity and transitions; social learning theories and informal learning in nursing practice; and the context of cancerland, namely, cancer system, cancer patients’ experience, and cancer nursing as a specialty. Participants completed a preinterview questionnaire that determined whether they met the criteria and were representative of the phenomenon being studied. Telephone interviews were conducted with 15 nurses with more than 3 months and less than 2 years working in 1 of 4 cancer facilities in Ontario. An interpretive, phenomenological approach was used to formulate a description of the newly hired nurses’ lived experience. Three overarching themes emerged unique to CNP: (a) Getting In - nurses perceptions of their recruitment and selection into CNP; (b) Surviving In - nurses’ struggles learning CNP and the emotional strain of “being with” critically ill and dying patients; and (c) Staying In - factors that impacted the nurses’ decision to stay or leave, such as effective nursing leadership, quality of work life, and accessibility of supports (preceptors and mentors) and professional education. The findings will assist nursing leaders, educators, and preceptors when developing strategies to enhance the recruitment, orientation, and education of nurses into CNP. The review included a description of the ways in which the nurses perceived their new role, as well as the rewards and difficulties they encountered as they coped during their first few months of practice. Also included were descriptions of the ways in which the nurses learned to transition into the different cancer nursing subspecialties of in-patient; outpatient; chemotherapy; radiation therapy; and urban, rural, and remote settings.