Introduction: A clinical autopsy is a medical procedure involving the examination of a corpse to accurately determine the cause of death. It is essential for understanding disease progression and evaluating the effectiveness of medical and nursing care. Purpose: The purpose of the Master's thesis is to determine the level of knowledge about the prescribed legal regulation regarding clinical autopsies among nursing students at the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ljubljana, to present their views and experiences in this area, and to examine differences in level of knowledge and views according to selected demographic characteristics. Methods: A quantitative non-experimental method was used, based on a cross-sectional study. Research hypotheses were tested using inferential statistics, and data were collected through a survey questionnaire. Descriptive statistical analysis included demographic characteristics, level of knowledge of the legal regulation, and respondents’ experiences and attitudes towards clinical autopsies. Results: The sample consisted of 83,67 % women and 14,29 % men; most were undergraduate students (77,55 %) and students employed through the student employment service (65,30 %). Poor knowledge was identified in 55,10 % of respondents, fair knowledge in 34,70 %, and good knowledge in 10,20 %. The mean attitude score (M = 3,19; SD = 0,334) was statistically significantly lower than the limit for positive attitudes. Most respondents have no practical experience of being present in the process of obtaining consent from relatives (89,80 %) and directly participating in the performance of clinical autopsies (95,92 %). The observed difference between sexes is statistically significant, however, the result should be interpreted with caution, as the low proportion of male respondents (14,29 %) may affect the stability of the estimates and test sensitivity. Discussion and conclusion: The findings indicate a low to satisfactory level of knowledge of relevant legislation, with the weakest understanding related to basic legal provisions. The attitudes were predominantly neutral, which can be linked to the low level of direct practical experience and limited exposure to the topic in the study process.
|