General surgery nurses' views on preoperative spiritual care: a qualitative descriptive study

Spiritual care has been shown to assist patients in managing anxiety, fear of death and existential concerns commonly encountered during the preoperative period. Nevertheless, surgical clinics often fail to prioritise this dimension of care. Accordingly, it is essential to gain a thorough understanding of how surgical nurses perceive and implement spiritual care. This study aims to describe the views of nurses working in surgical units regarding the provision of spiritual care in the preoperative phase, the challenges they encounter and the factors that influence this process.

A qualitative descriptive study using an inductive thematic analysis approach.

The study was conducted in the general surgery units of a tertiary-level hospital providing healthcare services to a diverse patient population, with the aim of enhancing nurses' views related to spiritual care.

18 nurses with a minimum of 6 months of experience in surgical units were selected using purposive sampling. Head nurses and those on leave during the data collection period were excluded from participation.

Semi-structured interviews were conducted via video conferencing or telephone between September and October 2023, each lasting between 45 and 60 min. Audio-recorded interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using Braun and Clarke's six-step thematic analysis method. Data collection ceased at the point of thematic saturation.

Three key themes emerged: (1) perceptions of spirituality-nurses viewed spirituality as abstract and subjective, yet recognised religious rituals as visible signs of patients' emotional and spiritual needs. (2) Spiritual care in nursing-though seen as vital to holistic care, spiritual support was limited by privacy concerns and unclear professional boundaries. (3) Dynamics of spiritual care-delivery was shaped by institutional barriers, nurses' personal traits and patients' non-verbal communication of distress.

This study revealed the views of general surgical nurses regarding spiritual care. The findings indicate that while nurses acknowledge the importance of spiritual care, they encounter obstacles in its implementation. Consequently, the results suggest that nurses need to be culturally sensitive and receive institutional support-particularly in collectivist and high-context cultures such as Turkey-in order to better understand and meet spiritual needs. Future studies should explore spiritual care models adapted to different cultural contexts.