Spiritual interventions: how, when, and why nurses use them

Area of Science:

• Nursing Research
• Healthcare Studies
• Sociology of Health

Background:

• Limited research exists on nurses' beliefs regarding spirituality's role in patient care.
• Previous studies primarily focused on nurses in terminal care settings.
• A gap in understanding shared ideas and practices for hospital-wide spiritual care culture.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate bedside nurses' perceptions of spiritual care.
• To identify nurses' offered spiritual services and the circumstances of their provision.
• To explore potential foundations for a hospital-wide culture of spiritual care.

Main Methods:

• Survey administered to bedside nurses.
• Data collected from a university hospital setting.
• Focus on understanding current nursing practices and beliefs.

Main Results:

• Findings on nurses' beliefs about the benefits of spirituality for patients.
• Data on the types and frequency of spiritual services provided by nurses.
• Insights into the contextual factors influencing spiritual care delivery.

Conclusions:

• The study provides a foundation for developing targeted spiritual care initiatives.
• Results can inform nursing education and practice guidelines.
• Highlights the need for further research into fostering spiritual care within healthcare institutions.