A Joint Learning Program for Licensed Nurses and Caregivers on End-of-Life Care in the Community - Vol. 9 - Abstract

Sep 28, 2026

The work addresses end-of-life care training gaps in Japan’s super-aging context, where many deaths occur outside medical facilities and patients often have impaired ADLs requiring complex support. Existing caregiver programs lack end-of-life care education, while nurses in non-hospital settings have experience mainly within hospitals and may struggle to collaborate with non-medical professionals. A joint learning program was developed for licensed nurses and caregivers, combining researcher-led planning, field input, an e-learning drama to strengthen empathy, expert lectures, and cross-professional shadowing to improve observations and judgments.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages1

Reading Time3 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Background and Rationale

Program Design and Learning Methods

Future Development

Innovation in Aging, 2025, Vol. 9, No. S2 225 Abstract citation ID: igaf122.753 A JOINT LEARNING PROGRAM FOR LICENSED NURSES AND CAREGIVERS ON END-OF-LIFE CARE IN THE COMMUNITY Yuka Sumikawa1, Hanako Numata2, Akari Maeda3, and Noriko Yamamoto-Mitani4, 1. University of Tokyo, BunkyoCity, Tokyo, Japan, 2. University of Tokyo, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan, 3. The University of Tokyo Global Nursing Research Center, Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan, 4. The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan While hospital deaths have long been the norm in Japan, the super-aging society is also a time of multiple deaths, and many people are now dying outside of medical facilities. In particular, many people who die from diseases other than cancer often have significantly impaired ADLs by the time of death and require care. However, current training programs for caregivers do not include education on end-of-life care, and many caregivers face difficulties in providing end-of-life care. On the other hand, most nurses who work outside of hospitals have experience in end-oflife care, but most of their experience is in hospitals and they are not used to work with non-medical professionals such as formal caregivers. Therefore, we have developed an educational program on end-of-life care, in which nurses and caregivers can learn about end-of-life care together. The concept was to make the education enjoyable and to enable nurses and caregivers to learn together. The educational program was planned mainly by the researchers, incorporating the opinions of nurses and caregivers in the field. An e-learning program was created in which a drama of end-of-life care was created to enhance their empathy for the patients, and lectures by experts were added at key points so that participants could learn specific end-of-life care techniques. Some possible participants shadowed different professions than themselves to learn more about the observations and judgments of other professions. In the future, we are considering evolving the program so that more professions, such as care managers, can learn together.

FAQs

Why is end-of-life care training needed in the community setting?

Many deaths in Japan now occur outside medical facilities, and many patients have impaired ADLs that require care. Current caregiver training programs often do not include end-of-life care education.

What key elements are included in the joint learning program?

The program uses e-learning featuring a drama to enhance empathy, expert lectures at key points to teach specific techniques, and shadowing across different professions to learn from other observations and judgments.

How is the program expected to improve collaboration between nurses and caregivers?

It enables nurses and caregivers to learn end-of-life care together, drawing on field input for planning and using activities that support understanding across medical and non-medical roles.

Sep 28, 2026

Uploaded by Olivia Brown