Introduction: Death and care of a deceased person are unavoidable in life. Therefore, a complete care approach is needed. However, this part is often neglected. Nurses as well as nursing students play an important role in this which is why their relationship to death needs to be understood and analyzed as well as their relation to the deceased person. The research of these problems (fear, avoidance, ignorance, too little experience, no support, routine work) that nursing students face when faced with the care of a deceased person improves the quality of formal education in nursing as well as its implementation in a clinical setting. Purpose: The purpose of the diploma thesis is to determine the way in which the care of the deceased is perceived among nursing students based on the experience in this field and the number of years (second, third and enrolled in an additional year) of formal education in nursing. Methods: A non-experimental quantitative survey was conducted specifically, and a pilot test questionnaire was prepared. In March 2019 an email was sent to 291 nursing students of year 2 and 3 enrolled in an additional year at the Faculty of Health Sciences. 138 volunteered anonymously. They rated their perceptions on a 4-point agreement scale on 27 claims. The data were analyzed using the SPSS 23.0 program and Excel.Significant statistical differences were verified by Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis level tests on a p ⡤ 0.05 level. Results: 47 % of the respondents responded. 75 % have experienced death with care and 69 % with care for the deceased. From the second year there were 42 % of students and from the third year 50 %. In the additional year there was 8 % of students who took part in the survey. Significant statistical differences were verified by Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis level tests on a p ⡤ 0.05 level. 47 % of the respondents responded. 75 % have experienced death with care and 69 % with care for the deceased. From the second year there were 42 % of students and from the third year 50 %. In the additional year there was 8 % of students who took part in the survey. Respondents with experience have a more neutral attitude (p = 0.02) and are less afraid of caring for a deceased person (p = 0.016) than those with no experience in the field. There were no other statistical differences, but the respondents of the second year seemed more qualified to care for the deceased. Discussion and conclusion: We conclude that nursing students with experience with death have a neutral attitude towards the care of the deceased, regardless of year 2 and 3, enrolled in an additional year of formal nursing education. However, additional skills and practical experiences will be required so they qualify for the quality care of the deceased as well as the support from the health professionals. These research findings will help improve teachers' and clinical mentors' abilities to support nursing students in the care of the deceased.
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