Communication skills for end-of-life nursing care. Teaching strategies from the ELNEC curriculum.

The End of Life Nursing Education Consortium (ELNEC) is a train-the-trainer educational program that helps nursing faculty integrate care of the dying patient and the patient's family into the nursing curriculum. This article presents pedagogical techniques derived from the ELNEC teaching module on communication and key content areas for developing communication skills in end-of-life care. Competent end-of-life nursing care begins with an understanding of communication techniques and their potential impact on care.