The experiences of providing children’s palliative care education in undergraduate nursing programmes – A discussion of some practical issues

Despite recent proliferation of palliative care services for children, and the fact that the needs of these children and their families are enshrined in current policy directives, the challenges of providing education for nurses within this area of practice is largely underexplored. This paper examines some of the key issues facing nurse educators who are involved in the delivery of palliative care content in undergraduate children’s nursing programmes. Drawing on the extensive experiences of two nurse educators in children’s palliative care education, research and practice, key issues which should be considered by those involved in curriculum development and delivery will be outlined. Such issues include ambiguity in terminology and resultant lack of conceptual clarity, the limited evidence base to underpin practice and education, the complexities of teaching sensitive topics to large groups and limited teaching expertise to deliver the content. Suggestions for addressing such issues will be outlined.