Background:

Scientific evidence shows gaps in the knowledge of health professionals about palliative care, influencing the quality of care.

Objective:

To characterise health professionals’ knowledge about palliative care in a Portuguese central university hospital.

Methodology:

Quantitative, descriptive-correlational, cross-sectional study, with health professionals from a central university hospital as target population. A questionnaire was applied to assess their knowledge about palliative care.

Results:

Of the 401 professionals in the sample, 16.96% have experience and 26.18% specific training in palliative care. On average, 80.53% of correct answers were given regarding the philosophy of palliative care. The knowledge about symptom control and family support was negatively correlated with the length of professional experience (p < 0.001).

Conclusion:

Most professionals demonstrate knowledge in palliative care, however it’s essential to invest in training, particularly in professionals with more length of professional practice.

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