Supporting pre-registration nursing students in their exploration of death and dying

Student nurses will be exposed to dying patients from the very start of their education. The authors believe that nurse lecturers have a duty of care towards both the student and the patient in preparing them to cope with this experience. End of life care deserves further emphasis within the forum of nurse education. Within this article the authors outline their introduction of a new teaching session at the beginning of the pre-registration nursing curriculum at Birmingham City University to help prepare student nurses from all four fields of nursing to participate in end of life care. This flexible session entitled ‘perceptions of dying’ allows the students to explore their fears, anxieties and expectations of caring for a patient at the end of their life and discusses the mechanisms available for seeking support. The purpose of this article is to raise debate about the teaching of the subject of death and dying within pre-registration nurse education and to show case the lesson concept that the authors believe could be disseminated further to address this student need.