A Master Programme in Cardiovascular Nursing; A Two-Year Follow-up (Short Papers) (Report‪)‬

Cardiovascular (CV) care is highly specialised and changes over time, thus increasing the need for well-educated nurses. Competence statements have been formulated in order to identify the knowledge and skills required for safe, effective and competent care within the CV area (1). A competence ladder has also been developed and serves as a guide for clinical and educational development (1,2). The reasons for the introduction of MPs in CV nursing are the high degree of specialisation in the CV area, the competence statements on CV care, the development of a competence ladder in addition to the large number of patients with various forms of CV disease. A master education is important for the individual nurse's career development as well as critical for keeping pace with the rapid changes and advances in the area (3,4). In 2003 a nationwide survey of Swedish university-level nursing schools showed that there was no master-level education in CV care (5,6). This, together with the fact that master education serve as a springboard for new researchers within this very active research area (7), motivated a university-level nursing school to develop and provide a one-year MP. However, the professional importance of a new education will remain unclear if no post exam follow-up is performed. Hence, the aim of this study was to evaluate requested competence, professional development and promotion after completion of a oneyear MP in CV nursing. Method