Knowledge and perceived competence among nurses caring for the dying in long-term care homes

BACKGROUND: The quality of care provided to dying long-term care (LTC) residents is often inadequate, which may be due to the lack of formal training that LTC staff receive in palliative care (PC). The present cross-sectional study assessed PC knowledge and self-efficacy in ability to provide PC in a sample of registered nurses working in LTC homes. METHOD: A survey was conducted in four LTC homes in October 2009 to June 2010. Nursing staff …