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Updated: Oct 10, 2026

Oral Health Assessment by Lay Personnel for Older Adults
Published on: February 2, 2020
Training Nursing Students in Communication and Spiritual Assessment
Alice Butzlaff1, Nancy Dudley2, Stefanie Erdman3
1Alice Butzlaff PhD, FNP, is associate professor, School of Nursing, San José State University, CA.
Abstract:
Nursing students require communication and spiritual assessment skills in the curriculum to provide whole-person palliative care to patients. This study used the communication style of motivational interviewing with the Faith, Importance, Community, Address care spiritual history tool to improve student confidence (N = 30) in connecting with others. Three qualitative themes demonstrated the potential for student growth: (1) active listening and nonjudgment allows people to open up, (2) the unknown territory of spirituality using Faith, Importance, Community, Address care as a guide, and (3) building confidence through practice. Recommendations support a dedicated palliative care course embedded in nursing curriculum to address the concepts of communication and spirituality.
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