Palliative care education for medical students: Differences in course evolution, organisation, evaluation and funding: A survey of all UK medical schools

Background:A proportion of newly qualified doctors report feeling unprepared to manage patients with palliative care and end-of-life needs. This may be related to barriers within their institution during undergraduate training. Information is limited regarding the current organisation of palliative care teaching across UK medical schools.Aims:To investigate the evolution and structure of palliative care teaching at UK medical schools.Design:Anonymised, web-based questionnaire.Settings/participants:Results were obtained from palliative care course organisers at all 30 UK medical schools.Results:The palliative care course was established through active planning (13/30, 43%), ad hoc development (10, 33%) or combination of approaches (7, 23%). The place of palliative care teaching within the curriculum varied. A student-selected palliative care component was offered by 29/30 (97%). All medical schools sought student feedback. The course was reviewed in 26/30 (87%) but not in 4. Similarly, a course organiser w...