Abstract:

Objective To explore the core competencies for advanced practice nurses （APN） in palliative care from the diverse perspectives of nursing managers，palliative care specialty nurses，and doctors，so as to provide a basis for constructing a localized core competency framework for APN and subsequent training curriculum development. Methods A descriptive qualitative research design was adopted，based on Hamric’s APN core competency framework. From August to October 2025，semi-structured interviews were conducted with 13 nursing managers，11 hospice care specialty nurses，and five physicians from nine province-level region across the country using purposive sampling. Thematic analysis was used for data analysis. Results Three core competency domains for hospice care APN were extracted，containing 20 specific competency items：advanced clinical practice competencies（ten items，including assessment and management of complex symptoms，the ability to provide care for patients with multiple comorbidities，and the ability to identify and address ethical and legal issues，etc.）；research competencies（six items，including research topics selection ability，evidence-based evidence integration ability，quality improvement and data analysis ability，etc.）；and humanistic leadership and educational competencies（four items，including leadership in multidisciplinary and resource coordination，education and training guidance ability，etc.） Conclusion The core competencies of hospice care APN constitute a multidimensional and advanced capability system. It is recommended that training courses based on the core competency framework be systematically developed in the future to cultivate professionals capable of coping with complex clinical situations and promoting the development of the discipline.

Key words: Hospice Care, Advanced Practice Nurse, Core Competency, Qualitative Research, Nursing Care