• This study investigates the relationship between death attitudes and life satisfaction among 623 professionals in Residential Care Facilities (RCFs), in Portugal. • Neutral Acceptance of death was positively associated with life satisfaction, while Escape Acceptance showed a negative association. • Marital status, field of study, religious affiliation, and experience with the death of a close person were significantly related to life satisfaction levels. • The findings highlight the psychological burden faced by professionals providing end-of-life care and its potential impact on their well-being. • Results emphasize the importance of implementing structured training programs and institutional guidelines on death and dying to promote professional resilience and improve the quality of care. Aging brings physical, emotional, and social challenges that require specialized care. Residential Care Facilities (RCFs) play a central role in caring for older adults at the end of life. Death affects not only residents and their families but also professionals, impacting their emotional well-being and performance. This study aims at analyzing the attitudes toward death and the levels of satisfaction with life in professionals working in Residential Care Facilities (RCFs). This is a quantitative, exploratory, and correlational study that includes 623 participants. Data was collected using a professional sociodemographic questionnaire, the Death Attitude Profile-Revised (DAP-R), and the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS). The study suggests that sociodemographic variables such as marital status, area of studies, and experiencing the death of a close person and religion can significantly impact satisfaction with life. Significant correlations are found between the two scales and in the differences related to sociodemographic factors. In DAP-R, the dimension Escape Acceptance shows a significant and negative correlation with satisfaction with life, while the dimension Neutral Acceptance shows a significant and positive correlation. The way RCF professionals perceive death, together with sociodemographic factors, may affect their levels of satisfaction with life, so it is important to consider these variables within the professional context. Training programs to build the capacity of professionals and the creation of guidelines to promote good practices on end of life and death could contribute to increased levels of SWL and the provision of adjusted care.
Nascimento et al. (Tue,) studied this question.