European study highlights gaps in palliative care education for future doctors
Only 15 of 55 European countries report compulsory palliative care teaching in every medical school. A new study in The Lancet Regional Health – Europe links national rules and recommendations to more widespread compulsory teaching, highlighting their potential to strengthen palliative care education across Europe.
In 17 countries, no medical school reports compulsory teaching in palliative care. Whether students receive this education as a required part of their medical degree therefore still depends on where they study.
The study was led by Professor Carlos Centeno, Director of the ATLANTES Global Observatory of Palliative Care at the University of Navarra, in collaboration with the European Palliative Care Research Centre (PRC) at Oslo University Hospital and the University of Oslo.
The research contributes to the education work led by Carlos Centeno within JANE-2’s Network of Expertise on Palliative Care. Professor Stein Kaasa at PRC leads the palliative care work package (WP6) and is a co-author of the study.
Education shapes future care
Relieving pain and other symptoms, communicating about serious illness and supporting patients and families are essential skills for doctors across specialties. Learning these skills during medical school can shape how doctors care for patients throughout their careers.
Using data from the EAPC Atlas of Palliative Care in Europe 2025 and a review of national frameworks, the researchers found that both binding rules and non-binding recommendations were associated with more widespread compulsory teaching.
France and Finland illustrate different approaches: France requires palliative care education by law, while Finland uses national recommendations. Every medical school in both countries includes compulsory teaching.
The findings highlight that ensuring palliative care education for all future doctors is also a matter of education policy and governance. Governments, medical educators and professional bodies can strengthen national frameworks through curriculum requirements, accreditation standards or formal recommendations. Although the study cannot establish cause and effect, it points to these frameworks as a promising policy tool for reducing inequalities in access to essential training.
The authors conclude that palliative care education should be a core requirement for future doctors, aligned with societal needs and the fundamental values of the medical profession.
Bringing knowledge into patient care
The findings support JANE-2’s work to strengthen undergraduate, postgraduate and specialist education and integrate palliative care into routine clinical practice across Europe.
“All doctors need basic competencies in palliative care. This study highlights substantial differences in access to compulsory teaching across Europe and provides an important foundation for our education work. In JANE-2, we work to ensure that knowledge of palliative care is used in everyday patient care across Europe, so that patients receive the care they need, when they need it, at all levels of healthcare,” says Professor Stein Kaasa.
Read the article
Centeno and colleagues. Association between national regulatory frameworks and compulsory undergraduate palliative care education in Europe: a cross-sectional study of 55 countries. The Lancet Regional Health – Europe (2026).
Read the open-access article here(The Lancet).
DOI: 10.1016/j.lanepe.2026.101871
The study was funded by JANE-2, co-funded through the European Union’s EU4Health programme (Grant Agreement 101183265), and ICS–ATLANTES.