Learning Outcomes

  • Define death
  • Describe what characterizes physical and social death 
  • Compare the leading causes of death in the world with those in the United States
  • Review the current statistics on suicide and fatal drug overdoses 
  • Define deaths of despair
  • Explain where people die
  • Describe how attitudes about death and death anxiety change as people age 
  • Explain the philosophy and practice of palliative care
  • Describe the roles of hospice and family caregivers
  • Explain the different types of advanced directives 
  • Describe cultural differences in end of life decisions 
  • Explain the different types of euthanasia and their controversies
  • Describe funeral rituals in different religions 
  • Describe the new practice of green burials 
  • Differentiate among grief, bereavement, and mourning 
  • List and describe the stages of loss based on Kübler-Ross’s model and describe the criticisms of the model 
  • Explain the dual-process model of grief 
  • Identify the impact of losing a child and parent 
  • Identify the four tasks of mourning 
  • Explain the importance of support groups for those in grief