Cancer Nursing Frameworks to Guide Clinical Capability, Education and Careers: A Scoping Review of the International Literature

Aim: This review aimed to provide a current global profile of all existing cancer nursing competency, capability, education and career frameworks and map capabilities and competencies to the clinical, facilitation of education, management and research pillars of practice.

Design: Scoping review.

Data sources: Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Cochrane Library, Epistemonikos, Google Scholar, Medline, and PubMed. Gray literature searches and reference list searches were also performed.

Methods: This review was guided by Arksey and O'Malley's method and followed PRISMA guidelines for reporting. Screening and data extraction was conducted independently by two or more authors. The quality of frameworks were assessed using The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) critical appraisal checklist for textual evidence: policy/consensus guidelines. Data were analyzed and narratively synthesized by experienced cancer nurse researchers.

Results: Thirty-four articles were included, comprising of 29 cancer nursing frameworks. Frameworks were categorized as competency frameworks, career and education frameworks, education/learning pathways, and career/professional development frameworks. Competencies and capabilities described in the frameworks were mapped to the four pillars of practice including clinical (n = 27), facilitation of learning (n = 20), leadership and management (n = 23), and research and scholarship (n = 24).

Conclusions: Comprehensive cancer nursing frameworks are pivotal in enabling nurse leaders to grow and develop the cancer nursing workforce globally. They are also integral to support cancer nurses in providing high-quality, effective, and safe care for patients and their families across the cancer continuum.

Impact: This is the first review to comprehensively capture and synthesize the capabilities, educational components, and career pathways outlined in existing cancer nursing frameworks worldwide and highlights where areas of improvement are needed to support professional growth, job satisfaction and retention of cancer nurses.

No patient of public contribution: This article is a review of frameworks and does not include patient or public contribution.