Research

14 pages, 703 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Spirituality and Health in Brazil: A Survey Snapshot of Research Groups

by Mary Rute Gomes Esperandio

Religions 2021, 12(1), 27; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel12010027 - 31 Dec 2020

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3149

Articles on “Spirituality and Health” have multiplied considerably in Brazil in the last decade. More recently, however, research groups created specifically to investigate this topic have emerged. This study aims to provide an overview of the field by means of a survey in [...] Read more.

Articles on “Spirituality and Health” have multiplied considerably in Brazil in the last decade. More recently, however, research groups created specifically to investigate this topic have emerged. This study aims to provide an overview of the field by means of a survey in the Directory of Research Groups in Brazil. Thirty-three groups were initially identified, of which 16 were selected for analysis and placed into two categories: “established” groups and lines of research, and “in-process” groups and lines of research. The survey made it possible to identify postgraduate programs that develop studies on this theme, the main researchers, and the potentials and challenges of this research field in Brazil. The results also indicate that “Spirituality and Health” is a fundamentally interdisciplinary field of research that is expanding and has gained greater legitimacy in the scientific community in the last four years. The main challenges to and potentials for advancement of knowledge are the need for theoretical and methodological development to support research, educational improvement in spiritual care, development of a critical and conscious reflection on the political implications of the field (especially due to the religious diversity in the Brazilian cultural context), and the role of spirituality/religiosity in public health promotion policies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spirituality in Healthcare—Multidisciplinary Approach)

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9 pages, 497 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Spirituality and Healthcare—Common Grounds for the Secular and Religious Worlds and Its Clinical Implications

by Marcelo Saad and Roberta de Medeiros

Religions 2021, 12(1), 22; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel12010022 - 29 Dec 2020

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 7771

Abstract

The spiritual dimension of patients has progressively gained more relevance in healthcare in the last decades. However, the term “spiritual” is an open, fluid concept and, for health purposes, no definition of spirituality is universally accepted. Health professionals and researchers have the challenge [...] Read more.

The spiritual dimension of patients has progressively gained more relevance in healthcare in the last decades. However, the term “spiritual” is an open, fluid concept and, for health purposes, no definition of spirituality is universally accepted. Health professionals and researchers have the challenge to cover the entire spectrum of the spiritual level in their practice. This is particularly difficult because most healthcare courses do not prepare their graduates in this field. They also need to face acts of prejudice by their peers or their managers. Here, the authors aim to clarify some common grounds between secular and religious worlds in the realm of spirituality and healthcare. This is a conceptual manuscript based on the available scientific literature and on the authors’ experience. The text explores the secular and religious intersection involving spirituality and healthcare, together with the common ground shared by the two fields, and consequent clinical implications. Summarisations presented here can be a didactic beginning for practitioners or scholars involved in health or behavioural sciences. The authors think this construct can favour accepting the patient’s spiritual dimension importance by healthcare professionals, treatment institutes, and government policies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spirituality in Healthcare—Multidisciplinary Approach)

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10 pages, 204 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Comparing Nurses’ and Patients’ Comfort Level with Spiritual Assessment

by Tove Giske and Pamela Cone

Religions 2020, 11(12), 671; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11120671 - 15 Dec 2020

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2154

Abstract

This paper presents and compares similarities and differences between nurses’ and patients’ reports on comfort levels with spiritual assessment. Spiritual care is a part of nurses’ professional responsibilities; however, nurses continue to report that they are poorly prepared for this. There is limited [...] Read more.

This paper presents and compares similarities and differences between nurses’ and patients’ reports on comfort levels with spiritual assessment. Spiritual care is a part of nurses’ professional responsibilities; however, nurses continue to report that they are poorly prepared for this. There is limited research on patients’ expectations or perspectives on spiritual care. For the original mixed-method, two-phased study, a 21-item survey with 10 demographic variables, and some open-ended questions related to the comfort level of assessing/being assessed in the spiritual domain were distributed to 172 nurses and 157 hospitalised patients. SPSS was used to analyse and compare the results from nurses and patients; thematic analysis was used to examine the open-ended questions. Nurses reported a higher high degree of comfort with spiritual assessment than patients reported towards being assessed spiritually. Both nurses and patients saw respect and trust as key to building a relationship where open questions related to spirituality can be used as a helpful way to assess patients spiritually. Increased understanding of the best approach toward a patient must be based on the beliefs, values, and practices of that patient so that spiritual care can be individually tailored, and nurses can help patients move along the path to healing. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spirituality in Healthcare—Multidisciplinary Approach)

8 pages, 1278 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Community Mental Health Nursing Consultation in a Public Bathhouse: A Spiritual Coping Resource

by Amélia Simões Figueiredo, Teresa Rasquilho Vidal, Cândida Ferrito, João Neves-Amado, Alexandra Sarreira-Santos, Lurdes Medeiros-Garcia, Juan Roldán-Merino and Antonia Vollrath Ramirez

Religions 2020, 11(11), 618; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11110618 - 19 Nov 2020

Viewed by 2279

Abstract

(1) Background: The spiritual dimension’s importance in health/disease processes is widely recognized, also being demonstrated by scientific evidence. Hence, its study is crucial, particularly with respect to a Mental health nursing consultation occurring in a community resource, such as a public bathhouse. This [...] Read more.

(1) Background: The spiritual dimension’s importance in health/disease processes is widely recognized, also being demonstrated by scientific evidence. Hence, its study is crucial, particularly with respect to a Mental health nursing consultation occurring in a community resource, such as a public bathhouse. This study aims to identify the nursing interventions of spiritual nature developed over 5 years in the abovementioned setting, thus characterizing the Portuguese reality; (2) Methods: Observational, cross-sectional and quantitative study, based on a sample comprising all users who attended a community Mental health nursing consultation, from March 2015, to 31 December 2019; (3) Results: A total of 205 nursing appointments were performed, from which emerged a set of 346 diagnoses, resulting in 455 nursing interventions. Of the latter, some deserve to be highlighted, due to a greater prevalence: “listening” (61; 13%), “supporting” (38; 8%), “promoting self-esteem” (37; 8%), “monitoring vital signs” (31; 7%), and “identifying attitude towards care” (25; 5%); (4) Conclusions: even though some of the interventions performed during the consultations were associated with the spiritual dimension, the collected data points towards a need for new diagnoses and nursing interventions, namely, those which may help mitigate spiritual distress. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spirituality in Healthcare—Multidisciplinary Approach)

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19 pages, 3049 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Spirituality and Health in Pandemic Times: Lessons from the Ancient Wisdom

by Alex Villas Boas

Religions 2020, 11(11), 583; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11110583 - 04 Nov 2020

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3901

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to analyze how the historical episode of the so-called Plague of Athens between the years 430 and 426 BC seems to have been the first phenomenon classified as an epidemic by Hippocrates, and the historian Thucydides described [...] Read more.

The goal of this paper is to analyze how the historical episode of the so-called Plague of Athens between the years 430 and 426 BC seems to have been the first phenomenon classified as an epidemic by Hippocrates, and the historian Thucydides described its cultural, social, political and religious consequences. However, such a crisis generated the need for a new culture, and consequently a new theological mentality, as a cultural driver that made it possible to transform the Asclepiad Sanctuary of Kos into the first hospital in the West to integrate spirituality and science as ways to promote the healing of culture in order to achieve the ideal of health. The adopted method was a semantic analysis of the classic texts that help contextualize the Hippocratic view of the epidemic, spirituality, and health, and how these questions were received by Christianity at the time. The reception of this experience by Christianity, despite suffering some tension, also expands this Greek ideal and constitutes a true heritage of ancient wisdom that can be revisited in the time of the new pandemic, COVID-19. The perspective assumed here is interdisciplinary, putting in dialogue Theology and Health Sciences. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spirituality in Healthcare—Multidisciplinary Approach)

10 pages, 1128 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Construction and Evaluation of an Educational Video: Nursing Assessment and Intervention of Patients’ Spiritual Needs

by Juliane Cristina Rodrigues, Talita Prado Simão Miranda, Francine Lima Fulquini, Caroline Guilherme, Sílvia Caldeira and Emilia Campos de Carvalho

Religions 2020, 11(9), 460; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11090460 - 08 Sep 2020

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2745

Abstract

Spirituality is particularly important in health and illness transitions and is a fundamental dimension of healthcare. However, nurses often feel underprepared to provide spiritual care and the use of dynamic and interactive strategies, such as educational videos, can facilitate the development of this [...] Read more.

Spirituality is particularly important in health and illness transitions and is a fundamental dimension of healthcare. However, nurses often feel underprepared to provide spiritual care and the use of dynamic and interactive strategies, such as educational videos, can facilitate the development of this competency in undergraduate education. This study aimed to construct and evaluate an educational video lasting 10 min and 52 s for nursing students concerning the assessment of patients’ spiritual needs. The methodological study was based on the pre-production, production, and post-production phases of the video with an evaluation of the comprehension and comprehensiveness of the content. The results demonstrated the pre-production phase was considered appropriate by the judges and allowed the phase of production of the educational video, considered an educational resource by 100% the experts. Nursing students were enrolled in the evaluation and 75% considered the content and the learning experience useful for their future roles as nurses. So, the educational video was considered a tool that facilitated deepening knowledge about spirituality and motivated students to assess spirituality in clinical practice. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spirituality in Healthcare—Multidisciplinary Approach)

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14 pages, 440 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Meanings and Interpretations of Spirituality in Nursing and Health

by Nasreen Lalani

Religions 2020, 11(9), 428; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11090428 - 21 Aug 2020

Cited by 27 | Viewed by 13450

Abstract

Numerous spirituality models and tools have been developed in health education and research, but a gap still exists around the conceptual clarity and articulation of spirituality among nurses and healthcare providers. Nurses and healthcare providers still find it difficult to interpret and apply [...] Read more.

Numerous spirituality models and tools have been developed in health education and research, but a gap still exists around the conceptual clarity and articulation of spirituality among nurses and healthcare providers. Nurses and healthcare providers still find it difficult to interpret and apply the concepts of spirituality in their practice settings. This paper provides a concept analysis of spirituality using the Walker and Avant method of conceptual analysis. Several databases including conceptual and empirical literature from various disciplines have been used. The defining attributes of spirituality included spirituality and religion as a separable or mutual construct, spirituality as a personal construct, wholeness and integration, meaning making and purpose, sense of connectedness and relationship, transcendence, inner source of power, energy, and strength. Major antecedents of spirituality found were faith, personal values, and belief systems, and life adversities. Consequences of spirituality included personal/spiritual growth and wellbeing, resilience, and religiousness. Spirituality is a unique and personal human experience, an individualised journey characterised by multiple experiential accounts such as meaning making, purpose, connectedness, wholeness and integration, energy, and transcendence. Spiritual experiences are often difficult to examine and measure using scientific tools and empirical language. Healthcare providers need to fully understand and apply spirituality and spiritual care aspects to provide holistic person-centred care. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spirituality in Healthcare—Multidisciplinary Approach)

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13 pages, 436 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Implementing “Link Nurses” as Spiritual Care Support in a General Hospital

by Bart Cusveller, Aliza Damsma-Bakker, Theotimus Streefkerk and René van Leeuwen

Religions 2020, 11(6), 308; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel11060308 - 23 Jun 2020

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2790

Abstract

Background: spiritual care by nurses may be omitted from clinical practice when not structurally embedded in daily professional care routines. Method: a mixed method study was designed to measure qualitative and quantitative outcomes of a “link nurse” as a spiritual care resource (LNSC). [...] Read more.

Background: spiritual care by nurses may be omitted from clinical practice when not structurally embedded in daily professional care routines. Method: a mixed method study was designed to measure qualitative and quantitative outcomes of a “link nurse” as a spiritual care resource (LNSC). Data were gathered from nurses (n = 123–86), link nurses (n = 15–18) and patients (n = 131–122) before and after an implementation and education project among (link) nurses. Results: findings show a self-reported increase of competency in providing spiritual care, especially assessment, counseling and referral in nurses, and referral in link nurses. In interviews afterwards, link nurses (n = 10) and nurses (n = 8) indicated more confidence in providing spiritual care. Patients reported high satisfaction with spiritual care by nurses, although differences in satisfaction between measurements before and after the project could not be demonstrated. Referral frequency to chaplaincy increased during the project. Conclusion(s): nurses may be willing to include spiritual care and collaboration as part of their professional role when support is provided by the hospital leadership. Education and practice development in spiritual care are supported by the implementation of link nurses, while the hospital’s leadership needs to take its responsibility to provide preconditions. Intervention evaluation suggested that the wider context of professional practice, collaboration, and organization needs to be addressed as well. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spirituality in Healthcare—Multidisciplinary Approach)

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