[Training in palliative care in nursing and medical schools in Chile]. / Estado de formación en cuidados paliativos a nivel del pregrado en las carreras de Medicina y Enfermería de Chile.

ABSTRACT

Training in Palliative Care (PC) at the undergraduate level has proven to be an effective strategy to expand access to this type of services. In Chile, the increase in magnitude of serious health-related suffering and the recently approved Law that guarantees universal access to Palliative Care, requires the extension of PC undergraduate training in medical and nursing schools. Therefore, this study assessed and described the characteristics of current PC training in the Schools of Medicine and Nursing of Chile through an online survey of their directors. Nursing schools report higher frequency of mandatory training hours and access to clinical training, while Medicine schools report higher frequency of elective internships. However, gaps persist in the number of teaching hours and the teaching methods used, which may be due to the scarcity of qualified professionals in PC, limited access to clinical fields and disciplinary differences. Strengthening and expanding PC training at the undergraduate level with practical and interdisciplinary methodologies are fundamental steps so that future medical and nursing professionals can provide adequate care and relief of serious health-related suffering to an aging population until the end of their life.