Using Case Studies to Bridge the Undergraduate Nursing Education Gap in Palliative and Hospice Care

Undergraduate nursing students struggle with understanding pharmacological pain management, especially in palliative care. New nurses indicate needing more experience with pain management and ethical dilemmas surrounding pain management. Despite increased focus on palliative care, nurses struggle when they enter the workforce. Historically, skills acquisition occurs during orientation; however, increased patients presenting with complex conditions require more support than orientation permits. Misconceptions in practice roles challenge new nurses in feeling comfortable delivering quality palliative care. This project aimed to develop real-life case scenarios aligned with palliative competencies for use in undergraduate courses. Literature was reviewed for current information, guiding the development of case studies set in 4 different care locations-long-term care, community, medical-surgical, and emergency department. Cases were mapped to align with palliative competencies and the essentials; this ensures ease of implementation over coursework, promoting confidence and competence in palliative interventions. Traditionally, palliative and hospice content is delivered with community courses, possibly limiting student competency across settings. These case studies present an opportunity for formative student assessment in pharmacological and other palliative management over 4 settings. Facilitation requires reflective techniques, and nurse faculty may need support in guiding discussions. Future research on the implementation of the case studies is warranted.