Atuação dos acadêmicos dos cursos da saúde frente ao processo de morte e morrer nos cenários de prática assistencial

Objective: the aim this study was to understand how university health students in the process of death and to die. Methods: this is a qualitative, descriptive and exploratory research. This study developed with 68 students of health courses, at a university in the south of the Santa Catarina State. The data collection was performed using a survey via an electronic form, and data analysis was performed based on the precepts of thematic content analysis and with the aid of the Atlas.ti software. Results: indicated two macro-categories: Attitudes of university health students in death, converging to acting with responsibility and professional ethics, also with expressions of sadness, grief and not accepting in the face of loss; and Difficulties and potential of university health students with the death, sustained by emotional shock and unpreparedness for news, absence of facilities and theoretical-practical skills to act in the process of death and to die. Conclusion: the university health students have difficulties to act in the process of death to die of the subjects to whom they provided assistance.