Objective: This study aimed to clarify the circumstances and challenges in home care-oriented hospital nurse training on the basis of results of hospital nurse self-evaluations of nursing activities implemented in preparation for home care.

Methods: Group interviews were conducted with 13 nurses at 9 different hospitals, and the results were qualitatively and inductively analyzed.

Results and Discussion: Six categories for actual nursing activities implemented in preparation for home care were extracted. These categories were "I leave home care to other medical professionals," "No form of inter-hospital cooperation has been established," "There is disparity in cooperation with home-visiting nurses," "Social resources are not being used due to a lack of knowledge," "Able to develop a perspective of home care through workshop participation, years of experience, and interest," and "Competency is lacking despite knowledge of home care." Home care was apparently not being utilized by hospital nurses due to a lack of knowledge of social resources and a lack of interdisciplinary cooperation.

Conclusions: Challenges in nurse training implemented in preparation for home care included compensating for the lack of practical knowledge of social resources and devising a duty system and inter-facility exchanges to allow nurses to build experience in other areas and departments. The results of this study suggested the need for organizational training initiatives and for improvement of the quality of individuals in order to put acquired knowledge into practice.