The anatomy room: a positive learning experience for nursing students.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Nursing Education
• Anatomy

Background:

• Death and dying management is crucial in nursing practice.
• Nursing students often lack prior exposure to death before clinicals.

Purpose of the Study:

• Compare the impact of anatomy teaching using cadavers versus plastic specimens on nursing students.
• Assess student preparedness for dealing with death.

Main Methods:

• Surveyed two groups of first-year nursing students.
• One group used dissected cadavers; the other used plastic anatomical specimens.
• Administered questionnaires before, immediately after, and 9 weeks post-initial teaching experience.

Main Results:

• Students using cadavers initially reported higher apprehension, stress, and symptoms.
• After 9 weeks, no significant differences in stress or symptom reporting were found between groups.
• A significant percentage of students using cadavers felt better prepared to handle death.

Conclusions:

• Learning anatomy with cadavers offers a beneficial, protected environment for initial exposure to death.
• This method may enhance nursing students' readiness for end-of-life care compared to clinical settings alone.