간호대학생의 죽음에 대한 인식과 임종간호태도

The Perception of Death and Attitudes towards Terminal Care among Nursing Students

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the perception of a good death and attitudes towards terminal care among nursing students. Methods: A cross-sectional study was used to gather self-reported data from 143 nursing students at two universities located in Wonju, Gangwon-do. The subjects completed the perception of death and the Korean version of Attitudes toward Nursing Care of the Dying Scale. The data were analyzed by t-test, ANOVA, and Person s correlation coefficients. Results: The mean score of perception of death was significantly different according to the subject’s grade (F=2.98, p=.034). The mean score of attitudes towards terminal care was significantly different according to grade (F=7.35, p<.001), experience of clinical practice (t=4.54, p<.001), and experience of the death of a patients during clinical practices (t=2.24, p=.027). There was a positive correlation between the perception of death and attitudes towards terminal care, and it was statistically significant (r=.225, p=.007). Conclusion: A systematic and diverse educational program is needed to improve the perception of death among nursing students. A support and counseling program is also needed to help nursing students who experience patient’s death during clinical practice to positively sublime their death.