Providing care for dying patients is a vital aspect of nursing practice, requiring emotional resilience and clinical competence. However, nursing students often exhibit varied attitudes toward end-of-life care, influenced by educational, personal and cultural factors. Understanding these attitudes is essential for developing effective nursing curricula. This study aimed to explore the attitudes of Palestinian undergraduate nursing students toward caring for dying patients and to identify the impact of academic progression and palliative care education on these attitudes. A cross-sectional correlational design was employed involving 355 third- and fourth-year nursing students from universities in the West Bank, Palestine. Data were collected using the Frommelt Attitudes Toward Care of the Dying Scale Form B (FATCOD-B) and analysed using SPSS version 26. Descriptive statistics, t-tests and Pearson correlations were used to assess attitudes and associated variables. Students demonstrated generally positive attitudes toward caring for dying patients, with a mean FATCOD-B score of 103.5 (SD=8.30). Significant differences were observed by academic year (p=.015) and completion of a palliative care course (p<.001). Fourth-year students and those who had taken the course exhibited significantly more positive attitudes. A small but significant positive correlation was found between age and attitude (r=.143, p=.032). The findings underscore the positive impact of academic progression and structured palliative care education on students' attitudes. Incorporating end-of-life care training into nursing curricula is essential to enhance compassionate, culturally sensitive and competent care for dying patients and their families.

Palliative care is a care service that positively supports the quality of life of patients with a life-threatening disease and their relatives. Lack of knowledge and the associated negative perception of individuals in this respect may be an obstacle for patients and their relatives to request and receive this service. This study aims to determine the knowledge and opinions about palliative care of patients' relatives who apply to palliative care centers and request palliative care services. This study, which has a quantitative, cross-sectional, descriptive and relational design, uses a questionnaire aimed at determining the demographic and experiential characteristics of the participants and a form containing statements to determine the knowledge and opinions of the participants regarding palliative care to collect data. The study revealed that most of the participants who applied for palliative care services had never received information about palliative care (56.3%) and most of them (78.5%) did not know or knew very little about this issue. It is recommended that comprehensive programmes should be planned and disseminated to raise awareness of not only the patients or their relatives, but also society as a whole in order to eliminate the lack of information and negative perception about end-of-life care, which is an important barrier to access to palliative care.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the challenges faced by families with children receiving treatment for cancer were magnified. Children with cancer are particularly vulnerable to both the psychological and physiological impacts of the virus, compared to other chronic health conditions. To examine the perspectives of children with advanced cancer and their caregivers about their experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. Cross-sectional qualitative study. Children undergoing treatment for advanced cancer (n=14) and their caregivers (n=15) were recruited from one academic medical centre in the south-eastern United States. Semi-structured interviews assessed the experiences of children and their caregivers during the COVID-19 pandemic throughout cancer treatment. A thematic content qualitative analysis identified themes. Qualitative interviews highlighted three emergent themes regarding the shared experiences of children with cancer and their caregivers during the COVID-19 pandemic: (1) isolation, (2) psychological impact and (3) positive changes. Parents and children uniquely identified unshared themes of (4) virtual school and (5) sources of comfort, respectively. Children with cancer and their families experienced distressing medical challenges and negative psychological consequences throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. However, perceived 'silver linings' such as togetherness and self-care might serve as protective factors.

Marie Curie is the largest charitable provider of palliative and end-of-life care in the UK. This paper describes a 2-year project to co-design a career development and progression framework for their specialist palliative and end-of-life care workforce. To illustrate how a collaborative systematic approach to complex co-design supports large scale workforce transformation. A mixed-methods participatory action research design was used incorporating principles of co-design, appreciative inquiry and practice development. Nine core workforce capabilities were identified as being critical to the delivery of person centered safe and effective palliative and end-of-life care for Marie Curie UK. These capabilities were embedded into appraisal processes at pilot sites, supporting role clarity and professional development. The authors present illustrations of the outputs of each phase of the career framework development as an audit trail from which to capture lessons learned, as well as the enablers and barriers to complex co-design. The Marie Curie UK's Career Progression and Development framework provides clearly articulated expectations of all nursing roles within the workforce for each level of practice, including the learning and development activities that support ongoing professional development. Future plans are to extend this across the allied healthcare workforce so that it is fully integrative of all roles involved in supporting palliative and end-of-life care. This will help to support long-term workforce development planning for the future. It aligns with national plans to improve workforce recruitment, retention and development in the palliative and end-of-life care workforce and paves the way for illustrating how to do this effectively with front line staff involved in care, delivery.

Preparing nursing students to care for children with a life-limiting illness is challenging for two main reasons: misconceptions about the breadth of services provided by a children's hospice and limited placement capacity for such services. This paper examines the development and value of a virtual children's hospice placement for children's nursing students and learning disability nursing students. A total of 40 nursing students undertook a week's virtual placement in a children's hospice. The innovative virtual placement used a national evidence-based model-Peer Enhanced e-Placement (PEEP) within a UK children's hospice. It was evaluated through pre- and post-placement surveys. Findings suggest that this e-placement, developed collaboratively between a children's hospice and a higher education institution enhanced student knowledge, skills and confidence. E placements, such as the one described here, can increase placement capacity alongside enhancing students' knowledge, skills and confidence.

Childhood cancer has a profound effect on the emotional and psychological well-being of parents, yet often their own psychological health is overlooked These parents silently suffer from psychological distress while caring for their children and use their own coping strategies. However, these challenges become worse in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) because of a financial constraint, lack of psychosocial support and healthcare resources. Despite this, limited studies have been carried out in LMICs regarding parents' emotional and psychological perspectives. To investigate the psychological and emotional difficulties faced by parents of children with cancer in a LMIC, with a particular emphasis on problems like limited access to psychosocial support that are common in developing nations. This study was conducted using a descriptive exploratory design to address the research question. With the help of the purposive sampling technique, a total of 12 participants were recruited from a private tertiary care hospital in Karachi, Pakistan. The data was collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews. Later, the findings were manually analysed using Creswell's criteria for content analysis. The findings revealed four major themes: (i) Parental reactions and feelings, (ii) Coping strategies and support systems, (iii) Challenges, and (iv) Parental perspective. Parents from LMICs frequently had to deal with additional obstacles, such as financial strain and a lack of psychological support. The study explored how parents from a LMIC feel when their child is diagnosed with cancer, where there is frequently lack of access to quality health care and emotional support. It is essential to understand their experiences and to provide them with the support they need in this difficult time. Psychological and emotional support for families affected by childhood cancer must be a top priority for policymakers and healthcare practitioners in LMICs.

In oncology, hope and cure are deeply linked. Hope helps patients endure treatment uncertainty, while cure remains the ultimate goal. Yet cancer diagnosis and treatment reshape how patients perceive this link as 'hope for cure'. This study explores how newly diagnosed oncology patients perceive 'hope for cure' during treatment phases. A descriptive qualitative research design was employed. In-depth, semi-structured interviews were carried out with 13 participants, who were chosen through purposive sampling. The collected data were then examined using conventional content analysis. Four main categories and were identified labeled as 'embracing independence', 'revolutionising mindset', 'support network' and 'nurturing self-belief'. This study explores how newly diagnosed cancer patients view 'hope for a cure' through independence, resilience, self-belief and support-showing hope as an active process built through daily experiences, not just medical outcomes.

Nutrition in palliative care is vital for improving the quality of life for chronically ill people. In this context, nurses aid in bridging the gap between palliative care and nutrition by furthering their knowledge and competencies and, ultimately, providing quality care to patients. This study aims to analyse nurses' attitudes and knowledge on nutrition in the palliative setting. This scoping review was conducted by following Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) methodology and PRISMA-ScR guidelines during the months of May-June 2024. Nurses can promote high-quality holistic care through ongoing education. Nutritional interventions, evaluation scales and tools and symptom management, can prevent malnutrition and reduce complications. Nurses and key members of the care team are responsible for assessing nutritional needs, managing symptoms and providing personalised interventions to enhance comfort and reduce distress. In conclusion, a patient-centered approach with evidence-based nutritional interventions ensures dignified and compassionate care during this period of care.

Point-of-care ultrasound (PoCUS) is increasingly used in palliative care for bedside assessment and symptom management. Despite their integral role in patient care registered nurses (RNs) rarely receive training or use PoCUS in practice. To evaluate the feasibility of training palliative care RNs to perform PoCUS exams and expand access to bedside imaging. RNs at a local residential hospice and outpatient clinic were trained in PoCUS for urinary retention, ascites and IV access through didactic and hands-on sessions. Data included scan logs, satisfaction surveys and RN feedback. RNs successfully performed PoCUS for bladder and ascites assessments, enabling timely interventions and reducing hospital visits. Patient and family satisfaction was high, and RNs reported increased confidence and interest in further training. Training RNs in PoCUS is feasible and enhances palliative care delivery by supporting timely, appropriate interventions at the bedside.