Experiences of medical students and nursing trainees from unexpected death through simulation training

BACKGROUND: Dying in simulation training is controversially discussed. On the one hand, the danger of an emotional overload of the learners is pointed out. On the other hand, dying in simulation settings is addressed as an opportunity to prepare future health professionals to deal with patient death. The present study investigates how medical students and nursing trainees experience the sudden death of a simulated patient and how and under which conditions it can be valuable to simulate the patient’s death. METHODS: At the TUM School of Medicine in Munich, Germany, we developed an interprofessional, simulation-based course in which participants were unexpectedly confronted with a cardiac arrest scenario within which resuscitation had to be discontinued due to an advanced directive. After the course, focus groups were conducted with nine medical students and six nursing trainees. Data were analysed using Grounded Theory techniques. RESULTS: The participants reported low to high emotional involvement. The active renunciation of life-sustaining measures was felt to be particularly formative and caused a strange feeling and helplessness. Questions of what could have been done differently determined interviewees’ thoughts. The participants appreciated the opportunity to experience what it feels like to lose a patient. The course experience encouraged interviewees to reflect on dying and the interviewees explained that they feel better prepared to face death after the course. The unexpected character of the confrontation, presence of the advanced directive and debriefing positively affected the impact of the simulation. CONCLUSIONS: The study recognises simulation training as a promising approach for preparing future health care professionals to encounter a patient’s death. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12909-023-04638-x.