Evaluation of education in palliative care: determining the effects on nurses' knowledge and attitudes

Our study was an evaluation of a pilot course in palliative nursing care designed to improve practising nurses' knowledge regarding cancer pain management and attitudes toward care of the dying patient. The course involved 12 weeks (36 hours) of systematic classroom instruction for registered nurses, and a one-day observational experience on a designated palliative care unit. A total of 16 nurses participated in the study. A repeated measures design was used to evaluate the effectiveness of the course. Attitudes toward care of the dying patient and his/her family were also evaluated. Results showed that nurses' attitudes improved significantly from Time 1 (first day of course) to Time 2 (last day of course) (p=0.0007), and that this improvement was maintained at Time 3 (three months later) (p=0.064). The observational experience on a palliative care unit held in conjunction with the course was reported to be helpful to students in consolidating theoretical instruction.