MEETING Spiritual Needs: A STUDY USING THE SPIRITUAL CARE COMPETENCE SCALE

Area of Science:

• Nursing
• Healthcare
• Spiritual Care

Background:

• Healthcare literature indicates a gap in nurses' ability to address patients' spiritual needs.
• Nurses may struggle to identify signs of spiritual distress in patients.
• Addressing spiritual needs is an often overlooked aspect of holistic patient care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore nurses' knowledge regarding spiritual care assessment.
• To determine nurses' competence in designing and implementing spiritual care plans.
• To evaluate nurses' skills in various facets of spiritual care, including communication and referral.

Main Methods:

• A study was conducted in a medical center setting.
• The Spiritual Care Competence Scale was utilized for assessment.
• Competence was measured across several domains: assessment, implementation, professionalization, quality improvement, personal support, patient counseling, referral, attitude, and communication.

Main Results:

• The study assessed nurses' knowledge and competence in spiritual care.
• Specific areas of competence measured included assessment, implementation, professionalization, quality improvement, personal support, patient counseling, referral, attitude toward patient spirituality, and communication of spiritual needs.

Conclusions:

• Findings will inform the development of targeted training programs for nurses.
• Improving nurses' spiritual care competence can enhance holistic patient care.
• Further research is needed to understand barriers and facilitators to spiritual care provision by nurses.