Objective To analyze the hotspots and development trends of relevant literature on hospice care courses at home and abroad, and to provide a basis and perspective for optimizing the construction of hospice care courses in China.Methods Relevant articles on domestic and foreign hospice care courses included in the core databases of China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) and Web of Science from 2016 to 2025 were retrieved. Cite Space 6.3.R3 software was used for the analysis of annual publications and keywords.Results A total of 838 articles were included, among which 206 were domestic articles and 632 were foreign articles. The overall annual number of published articles both at home and abroad showed an overall upward trend, and the overall growth rate of annual published articles abroad is even faster. In other countries, courses focus on specialized skills and interdisciplinary collaboration, while in China, they are still at an early stage, emphasizing basic contents such as humanistic care and life education.Conclusion When building hospice care courses in China, educators should draw on foreign experience. A hierarchical system of "basic core plus specialized expansion" can be established to address content gaps. It is also necessary to continuously innovate practical teaching models, improve the interdisciplinary training systems, and systematically enhance the specialized hospice care capabilities of learners.