Impact of palliative care education on nursing students' attitudes toward end-of-life care: a pre-post analysis.

Abstract

Aim: To evaluate the impact of a palliative care educational intervention on nursing students' attitudes toward end-of-life (EOL) care, using the Frommelt Attitude Toward Care of the Dying Scale (FATCOD-B).

Methods: A pre-post design was employed and 52 third-year nursing students enrolled in the study and 39 completed the post-intervention assessment. Attitudinal changes of nursing students were measured before and after a palliative care module was taken. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and paired student's t-tests. Additional subgroup analyses were conducted based on age, gender and prior palliative care experience.

Results: The overall increase in FATCOD-B scores was not statistically significant (p=0.705). However, students aged 28-35 showed a significant improvement in attitudes (p=0.014), suggesting that emotional maturity enhances receptiveness to palliative care education. Prior experience in palliative care was also associated with more positive attitudes post-intervention, though results were not statistically significant.

Conclusion: While the educational intervention led to modest improvements in attitudes toward EOL care, particularly among older students, the findings highlight the need for personalised, sustained and reflective training approaches. Tailoring education to students' developmental stages and incorporating experiential learning can better prepare nursing students for the emotional challenges of EOL care. These insights have significant implications for the development of more effective palliative care curricula in nursing education.