Methods for How Death, Dying Are Taught in Medical School Vary Considerably

TUESDAY, Jan. 20, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- There is considerable variation in how death and dying are taught in U.S. medical schools, according to a review published online Dec. 3 in Academic Medicine.Logan Patterson, M.D., from the Spokane Teaching Health Clinic in Washington, and colleagues identified evidence-based teaching practices and areas of opportunities to enhance death and dying education for future physicians in a scoping review conducted in a U.S. medical school setting. The analytic sample for the review was 43 articles.The researchers found that the articles described considerable variation in how death and dying are taught in medical schools. Quantitative methodologies were used in 21 studies, qualitative methodologies were used in 13 studies, and mixed or multiple methods were used in nine studies. The findings were organized around the knowledge, skills, and abilities model, in line with competency-based medical education standards. Twenty-five of the articles emphasized knowledge acquisition, 22 integrated skills-based elements, and 28 addressed evaluation of abilities. Within skills-based interventions, simulation training was common."Doctors need to be comfortable with the topic of death and talking to patients about it, especially those with cancer," Patterson said in a statement. "Training for those conversations isn't really taught in medical institutions. A lot of that has to do with required medical testing; multiple choice questions about care planning are hard to write because of the detail required."Abstract/Full Text.Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter

Methods for How Death, Dying Are Taught in Medical School Vary Considerably

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