Death and End of Life: Perceptions Throughout The Career About Death, Palliative Care, and Educational Process

Purpose: To evaluate the perception of attending physicians, medical residents, and undergraduate medical students about death and dying, the end of life (EoL), and palliative care (PC) during training and clinical practice, highlighting knowledge gaps, and the changes needed in medical school curri...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of palliative care 2021-10, Vol.36 (4), p.243-247
Main Authors: Corradi, Maria Luiza Galoro, Duim, Etienne, Rodrigues, Cibele Isaac Saad
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Attitudes
Clinical medicine
Core curriculum
Death & dying
Medical education
Medical residencies
Medical students
Palliative care
Physicians
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Summary:Purpose: To evaluate the perception of attending physicians, medical residents, and undergraduate medical students about death and dying, the end of life (EoL), and palliative care (PC) during training and clinical practice, highlighting knowledge gaps, and the changes needed in medical school curricula. Method: Cross-sectional study of 12 attending physicians, residents, and undergraduate medical students randomly selected from a single teaching hospital in São Paulo, Brazil, 2018. Semi-structured interviews were conducted, transcripts were coded in depth, and categorizing analysis was carried out. Results: Three topical categories were recognized: Negative feelings about death and the EoL, importance of PC, and gaps in curricular structure hindering preparedness for PC and EoL communication. Besides differing perspectives depending on their years of experience, all participants strongly endorsed that the current medical school curriculum does not train and support physicians to handle EoL and PC. Conclusions: Medical education plays a fundamental role in the development of knowledge and skills on death, dying, and PC. Such practices should extend throughout the course and be continuously improved after graduates move to clinical practice.
ISSN:0825-8597
2369-5293
DOI:10.1177/0825859720923435