Expert to novice: Understanding the challenges of transition to the specialist community public health nurse - health visitor role and its implications for role retention. A constructivist grounded theory

This research provides a rich evidence-base for the multifaceted and challenging transition to the health visitor role. The greater understanding provided will support future health visitor students, educators and workforce development, potentially enhancing future retention. The findings resonate with similar role transitions, especially those involving a move from expert to novice, extending the relevance outside of the health visitor profession. Future research should include further evaluation of the substantive theory and model with further participants including a wider range of healthcare professional roles, exploration of managing multiple role identities and heightened definition of the health visitor role.