Effect of Education Given to Nursing Students on Their Palliative Care Knowledge and Attitudes
Author(s)
Miklós Lukács, BSc, MSc1, Agnes Csikos, MSc, PhD2, Imre Boncz, MSc, PhD, MD3, Ilona Karácsony, PhD4, József Betlehem, BSc, MSc, PhD5, Annamaria Pakai, MSc, RN, PhD5.
1Institute of Basic Health Sciences, Midwifery and Health Visiting, University of Pécs, Pécs, Hungary, 2Institute of Primary Care, University of Pécs, Pécs, Hungary, 3Institute for Health Insurance, University of Pécs, Pécs, Hungary, 4Institute of Basic Health Sciences, Midwifery and Health Visiting, University of Pécs, Szombathely, Hungary, 5Institute of Emergency Care, Pedagogy of Health and Nursing Sciences, University of Pécs, Pécs, Hungary.
1Institute of Basic Health Sciences, Midwifery and Health Visiting, University of Pécs, Pécs, Hungary, 2Institute of Primary Care, University of Pécs, Pécs, Hungary, 3Institute for Health Insurance, University of Pécs, Pécs, Hungary, 4Institute of Basic Health Sciences, Midwifery and Health Visiting, University of Pécs, Szombathely, Hungary, 5Institute of Emergency Care, Pedagogy of Health and Nursing Sciences, University of Pécs, Pécs, Hungary.
OBJECTIVES: The development of educational programs on palliative care is of paramount importance in Hungary. The ELNEC curriculum is widely used in both adult and pediatric nursing education program. The aim is to develop the theoretical and practical curriculum methods of palliative care.
METHODS: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted with the participation of 133 nurses. During the study, we targeted 500 nurses, but currently 133 effective responses were received. A self-designed questionnaire consisting of 27 questions was used, which included both closed and open questions. Descriptive, quantitative analysis and SPSS statistical program were used for statistical analysis. The survey is currently ongoing, so we can publish preliminary results.
RESULTS: The mean age of participants was 41.18 years, the majority (87.97%) were female, 45.11% had secondary education, 21.05% had Bachelor (BSc) and 10.53% had Master (MSc) nursing qualifications. 26.76% of the respondents worked in palliative care, 11.28% in home care and 10.53% in elderly care. Their mean nursing experience was 17.29 years. 96.9% of respondents consider that palliative care training needs to be improved, especially (59.04%) they need more practice-oriented training, e.g. in delivering bad news, communication, family discussions.85.71% believe that further training is needed, but they consider practical training based on situational tasks/skills development laboratories (40.60%), online professional workshops (26.32%), podcasts (18.05%) and the creation of professional clubs (15.79%) to be particularly important. They need to strengthen the use of distressing symptoms (e.g. bleeding, pain, dyspnea) and palliative therapies (e.g. palliative sedation). Age of the respondents and the attitude were not significantly correlated (p = 0.686.)
CONCLUSIONS: Palliative care education programme can improve nursing students' knowledge and attitudes toward caring for patients at the end of life and supporting their families. Therefore, it is recommended that a palliative care course should be a mandatory part of nursing curricula.
METHODS: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted with the participation of 133 nurses. During the study, we targeted 500 nurses, but currently 133 effective responses were received. A self-designed questionnaire consisting of 27 questions was used, which included both closed and open questions. Descriptive, quantitative analysis and SPSS statistical program were used for statistical analysis. The survey is currently ongoing, so we can publish preliminary results.
RESULTS: The mean age of participants was 41.18 years, the majority (87.97%) were female, 45.11% had secondary education, 21.05% had Bachelor (BSc) and 10.53% had Master (MSc) nursing qualifications. 26.76% of the respondents worked in palliative care, 11.28% in home care and 10.53% in elderly care. Their mean nursing experience was 17.29 years. 96.9% of respondents consider that palliative care training needs to be improved, especially (59.04%) they need more practice-oriented training, e.g. in delivering bad news, communication, family discussions.85.71% believe that further training is needed, but they consider practical training based on situational tasks/skills development laboratories (40.60%), online professional workshops (26.32%), podcasts (18.05%) and the creation of professional clubs (15.79%) to be particularly important. They need to strengthen the use of distressing symptoms (e.g. bleeding, pain, dyspnea) and palliative therapies (e.g. palliative sedation). Age of the respondents and the attitude were not significantly correlated (p = 0.686.)
CONCLUSIONS: Palliative care education programme can improve nursing students' knowledge and attitudes toward caring for patients at the end of life and supporting their families. Therefore, it is recommended that a palliative care course should be a mandatory part of nursing curricula.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2025-11, ISPOR Europe 2025, Glasgow, Scotland
Value in Health, Volume 28, Issue S2
Code
EPH68
Topic
Epidemiology & Public Health, Organizational Practices
Topic Subcategory
Public Health
Disease
No Additional Disease & Conditions/Specialized Treatment Areas