Nursing students 'attitudes toward elderly people have frequently been found to be negative. This study's aim was to describe the experiences offirst-year nursing students with elderly people. Thirty students from 3 Swedish nursing colleges, interviewed during the last weeks of theirfirst year, were asked to describe a memorable event that had occurred when they were caringfor an elderly patient. The narratives were analyzed phenomenologically. Three perspectives emerged: the students'perceptions of the patients, the staff's roles, and their own roles. From these, two phenomena were identified: patients' helplessness and students' identifi cation/nonidentifi cation of the individual patient. Students described difficultsituationsfor elderly patients; patients with difficult diseases, anxiety, pride; and conflicting views of how to treat patients.
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