Bioethics and palliative care in medical school: a curriculum proposal

Abstract

Population aging caused by increased life expectancy will result in an increasing demand for professionals specialized in palliative care. Due to the growing number of patients in need of this care profile, medical schools must prioritize palliative education during undergraduate studies, since the teaching of bioethics and palliative care remains timid in the curricula of Brazilian medical schools. Discussing new curricula can therefore contribute to medical education in the field and allow for better training in palliative medicine for the future professional trajectory of medical students. A new curriculum proposal is presented, result of a research on the teaching of bioethics and palliative care in a medical school in the Federal District, Brazil.