A qualitative exploration of Irish nursing students' experiences of caring for the dying patient

AIM: To explore Irish nursing students' experiences of caring for dying patients and their families to understand these experiences and determine whether or not students felt prepared for this role. DESIGN: This study used a qualitative descriptive research design. METHODS: One to one semi‐structured interviews were used to collect data, implementing open‐ended questions to explore seven student nurses' experiences. RESULTS: Five main themes emerged: Student's first experiences, emotional experience of caring, educational preparation, challenging aspects of caring for dying patients and their families and need for support in practice. Students' first experience of caring for a dying patient and their family was a confronting event for students, both personally and professionally. Nursing students require adequate and timely education on end of life care and a practical and supportive clinical learning environment to effectively support and prepare students for caring for a dying patient and their family.