Exploring the impact of education and experience on death anxiety in graduate nurses

It is almost inevitable that nurses caring for patients will encounter death. Nurses are often ill prepared to care for dying patients and their relatives and for dealing with their own emotions and responses in these situations. Anecdotal evidence would suggest that many new graduate nurses experience death anxiety and feel that the education and support they receive are inadequate. This study into the phenomena of death anxiety in New Graduate Nurses was conducted over a two year period and utilised a death anxiety questionnaire and semi structured interviews.

The subject group attended a Death Issues Workshop and the research evaluates the impact of this workshop on the level of death anxiety experienced by these nurses. The control group did not receive any formal education on death issues during their program. This paper presents research findings and provides important insights into nurses' encounters with death and details factors impacting on nurses' personal philosophies of life and death.

It is evident that preparation of nurses is inadequate and recommendations are made for strategies which will provide undergraduate students and new graduate nurses with the opportunity to explore their own beliefs, feelings and fears about death and prepare them to provide support for patients, their relatives and colleagues. Consideration is also given to ways of improving communication in this area for more experienced members of the health care team.

Associated Publication(s):
Brisley P, Wood L. The impact of education and experience on death anxiety in new graduate nurses. Contemporary Nurse 2004 Jul-Aug; 17(1-2): 102-8