Abstract: Objective To evaluate the teaching effect of end-of-life care course in Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine. Methods A combined quantitative and qualitative evaluation method was adopted. A total of 66 undergraduates in our university were selected as the research subjects from October to December 2020. Before and after the end-of-life care course teaching, the Chinese version of the death attitude profile-revised (DAP-R) and the Chinese version of the frommelt attitude toward care of the dying scale-form B (FATCOD-B) were used to conduct questionnaire surveys, and the students were asked to write personal learning experience after the course. Paired sample t-test, Wilconxon signed rank test and content analysis were used to analyze the data. Results After the course teaching, the scores of death avoidance[2.00 (0.80) vs. 2.50 (1.00)] and fear of death [(2.19±0.63) vs. (2.43±0.65) ] decreased significantly (all P<0.01), while the total score of hospice care attitude increased significantly [119.00 (12.00) vs. 107.50 (12.00), P<0.01]. Two themes were formed by analyzing the learning experience documents: “learning gains” and “course feedback”. The theme of “learning gains” included three sub-themes: “facing death and thinking about life”, “understanding and accepting the concept of hospice care” and “comprehending the humanistic spirit of medicine”. The theme of “course feedback” included two sub-themes: “recognition and satisfaction with the course” and “suggestions to strengthen practice training and expand the scope of students”. Conclusions End-of-life care course was recognized by medical students and can help them to reduce fear of death and death avoidance, improve hospice care attitude as well as enhance humanistic quality.

Key words: End-of-life care, Death attitude, Teaching effect, Medical students