Evaluation of Differences in Knowledge and Attitudes Regarding Hospice Palliative Care between Nursing Students and Clinical Nurses at a Medical University Hospital at a Central Taiwan University

Abstract

Nurses play the most important role in hospice teams treating terminally ill patients. As such, nursing students require more education and training in hospice care to increases their professional hospice care competency. For this review of the effectiveness of the current nursing curriculum with regard to hospice palliative care, we conducted an assessment of the differences in knowledge and attitudes about hospice palliative care between first to fourth-year nursing students and clinical nurses at a medical university hospital in central Taiwan. Questionnaires, designed to be self-administered, addressed questions in three domains. Questions in the first domain assessed respondents' basic knowledge regarding hospice palliative care. Those in the second assessed respondent attitudes toward hospice palliative care through a series of questions including whether terminally ill patients should be informed of the full extent of their condition; whether National Health Insurance (NIH) should pay for hospice palliative care; whether thanatology should be taught as a compulsory subject in medical school; whether the respondent would be willing to be either a hospice palliative care volunteer or terminal care nurse; and whether hospice training should be included in the medical school curriculum. Questions in the third domain recorded respondents' personal data. On our survey, clinical nurses generally scored higher than nursing students on basic knowledge regarding hospice palliative care and on the standard composition of a hospice team. As a group, nursing students outscored clinical nurses on questions regarding which diseases benefit from hospice palliative care services and hospice palliative care entries. Clinical nurses were more supportive of telling terminally ill patients the severity of their condition, having the National Health Insurance cover palliative care costs, making thanatology compulsory for medical school students, and instituting a hospice palliative care curriculum in medical school. Nursing students indicated greater willingness to serve as hospice palliative care volunteers and terminal care nurses. Our study shows that further hospice-palliative care education is required for both nursing students and clinical nurses.