University of Melbourne introduces elective subjects on death education

It is introduced to make medical students more well-equipped to deal with the tough realities of working in the medical sector.

Study in Australia: The University of Melbourne has introduced death education as an elective subject for medical students to make them more well-equipped to deal with the practical realities of working in the medical field.

Subject co-designer Dr Hannah Gould said, “the concept of death is shrouded in taboo and the lack of education in this space is leading to clinicians being vastly underprepared when entering the workforce. The aim of this subject is to break down the societal stigma by bridging the gap between our healthcare and deathcare systems. Many medical students who enrol, start off feeling anxious about dealing with death and some have admitted they’re worried about the guilt that may arise from losing a patient. Our goal is to help students overcome their fear by changing their outlook and helping them accept the fact that death is a central part of the job.”

“The feedback has been extremely positive and we’ve found multiple students went from being afraid of death to wanting to pursue a career in palliative care after completing the subject,” Dr Gould said.

Death Education: More Details

The curriculum covers death-related important topics including the importance of cultural sensitivity, diverse views surrounding death and dying, compassionate communication with patients and families when the medical professionals are supporting terminally ill patients, and how to navigate end-of-life medical decision-making including burial and cremation processes.

Two medical students Paris Matthews and Isabelle Ewert were inspired by the subject.

Paris Matthews said, “there is inadequate education in this space as the subject matter isn’t universally taught. We’re aiming to fill the gap by having open and frank discussions on our podcast as well as providing links on our website to educational resources, essentially creating a hub for clinicians to access support under the one roof.”

Isabelle Ewert said, “we hope to eventually extend our advocacy work by establishing day courses or workshops to help educate students who haven’t had the opportunity to undertake the death and dying subject.”

Read more:

• Study Abroad: Australian students launch into space internships with NASA
• Study in UK: Universities in East Midlands receive funding to inspire students to research