Spirituality, Spiritual Well-Being, and Spiritual Coping in Advanced Heart Failure: Review of the Literature

Abstract

It is marked by considerable suffering, for which palliative care has been recommended. Palliative care standards require the inclusion of spiritual care, but there is a paucity of literature supporting effective spiritual interventions for the heart failure population. A literature search resulted in 30 articles meeting the criteria for review of spirituality and spiritual coping in the heart failure population. Findings within this body of literature include descriptive evidence of the uniqueness of spirituality in this population, quantitative and qualitative approaches to inquiry, theoretical models of spiritual coping, and proposed interventions. The article concludes with implications for future research and practice.

Is Belonging to a Religious Organization Enough? Differences in Religious Affiliation Versus Self-Ratings of Spirituality on Behavioral and Psychological Variables in Individuals with Heart Failure

“…Such associations are seen for both genders for mental health [6] as well as chronic and physical disorders [7]. A recent literature review shows these same benefits for individuals with HF [8]. Individuals with HF who report more daily spiritual experiences have higher existential well-being [9].…”

“…A recent literature review shows these same benefits for individuals with HF [ 8 ]. Individuals with HF who report more daily spiritual experiences have higher existential well-being [ 9 ].…”

“…Mills et al [10] showed that gratitude statistically mediated spiritual well-being and better sleep quality and less depressive mood. Broadly, this literature indicates that spiritual wellness may be a protective factor against many adverse symptoms seen in HF, having an overall positive impact on the wellness of HF patients [8,11,12].…”

“…Yet, not everyone that defines themselves as being spiritual belongs to a religious institution, nor is belonging to a religious institution a requirement for spirituality [ 16 ]. While studies emphasize the benefits of spirituality for better health [ 17 , 18 ], including HF [ 8 , 10 , 11 ], it remains unknown whether belonging to a religious institution without a spiritual component, is sufficient to obtain the same benefits in HF patients. In fact, in their longitudinal study in a national sample of African Americans, Roth and colleagues [ 19 ] concluded that “simply attending religious services will not, by itself, achieve health benefits” (p. 423), pointing to the necessity to consider the role of other variables.…”

Kalp Yetersizliği Hastaları ve Bakım Veren Aile Üyelerinde Yaşam Kalitesi, Depresyon, Anksiyete, Stres ve Spiritüel İyilik Hali Arasındaki İlişki

“…[23,36,40] Spirituality is important for ascertaining health-related behaviors, attitudes and beliefs in patients with HF. [36,41,42] Bekelman et al stated that the mean FACIT-Sp scores of patients with HF were 37.0 and a better SWB was strongly associated with lower depression in their cross-sectional study. [36] Similar to this finding, the mean FACIT-Sp scores were 36.2 in our study, and we confirmed that there was a moderately negative correlation between the DASS and the FACIT-Sp scales in patients with HF.…”