Storyboarding as an aid to learning about death in children’s nursing

Abstract

The sudden or anticipated death of a child is one of the most challenging and unique experiences that children’s nursing students will encounter in practice. There is evidence to suggest that the effect this can have on a practitioner can affect quality of care. Although education for nurses about dealing with death has been studied, there is limited research into the education of those working with dying children and how effective it is in preparing them to deal with the situation. This deficit presents those involved in children’s nurse education with a significant challenge and an opportunity to be innovative. This article examines the use of storyboarding as a creative teaching tool to enable children’s nursing students to reflect on their experiences of working with children and families in death situations. The wider implications for the use of this technique in practice and education are considered.