End-of-Life Spiritual Care from the Perspective of Intensive Care Nurses in Türkiye: An Exploratory Mixed Study

This study aims to explore the spiritual care levels, death-related perceptions, and experiences of intensive care nurses in providing spiritual care to patients in end-of-life care. Quantitative data were collected from 111 intensive care nurses using a Sociodemographic Information Form, the Spirituality and Spiritual Care Rating Scale (SSCRS), and the Good Death Scale (GDS). Qualitative data were gathered through face-to-face interviews with 10 intensive care nurses using open-ended, semi-structured questions. The qualitative data were analyzed using the content analysis methods. The results revealed that the mean SSCRS score of the participants was above moderate (3.70 ± 0.38), while their mean GDS score was high (52.00 ± 8.00). It was also found that religious beliefs and GDS scores significantly predicted the SSCRS scores of the participants (p < 0.001). As a result of the examination of the data, three main themes and 16 sub-themes were obtained. The main themes were named "Spiritual Care Practices," "Effects of Spiritual Care on Patients," and "Difficulties and Facilitators." These results are crucial for enhancing the quality of spiritual care provided to patients approaching their end of life by intensive care nurses.