Strategies to Support Spirituality in Health Care Communication

Reblin, Maija; Otis‐Green, Shirley; Ellington, Lee; Clayton, Margaret F.

doi:10.1177/0898010114531856

Cited by 12 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Spirituality is not something anyone could be compelled to and requires a certain convergence in communication. If relation-centred care is always already spiritual as Reblin et al note (Reblin et al 2014 , p. 269), the caregivers and volunteers of our study have been well prepared. This applies to the institution of hospices we came upon.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

The Provision of Spiritual Care in Hospices: A Study in Four Hospices in North Rhine-Westphalia

Walker¹,

Breitsameter²

2017

J Relig Health

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This article considers the role and the practices of spiritual care in hospices. While spiritual care was firmly established as one of the four pillars of practical hospice care alongside medical, psychological and social care by Cicely Saunders, the importance and functions of spiritual care in daily practice remain arguable. When speaking about spirituality, what are we actually speaking about? What form do the spiritual relations take between full-time staff and volunteers on the one hand, and the patients and their family members on the other? These were central questions of a qualitative study that we carried out in four hospices in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, to explore how spiritual care is provided in hospices and what significance spirituality has in hospices. The study shows that the advantages of a broader definition of spirituality lie in “spiritual care” no longer being bound to one single profession, namely that of the chaplain. It also opens the way for nurses and volunteers—irrespective of their own religious beliefs—to provide spiritual end-of-life care to patients in hospices. If the hospice nurses and volunteers were able to mitigate the patients’ fear not only by using medications but also in a psychosocial or spiritual respect, then they saw this as a successful psychological and spiritual guidance. The spiritual guidance is to some degree independent of religious belief because it refers to a “spirit” or “inner core” of human beings. But this guidance needs assistance from professional knowledge considering religious rituals if the patients are deeply rooted in a (non-Christian) religion. Here, the lack of knowledge could be eliminated by further education as an essential but not sufficient condition.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

The Provision of Spiritual Care in Hospices: A Study in Four Hospices in North Rhine-Westphalia

Walker¹,

Breitsameter²

2017

J Relig Health

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“…It is possible that nurses are somewhat uncomfortable or feel less effective discussing spiritual matters (Molzahn & Sheilds, 2008; Reblin et al, 2014). It is also possible that other hospice team members such as chaplains or the family’s spiritual advisors engage in these conversations with patients and caregivers, and as such nurses feel that they can focus on different caregiver and patient needs.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…If requested by caregivers or deemed appropriate by the hospice nurse, engaging in spiritual discussions for those with and without prior religious affiliation can be accomplished by asking about family traditions and providing conversational “space” that allows the caregiver to explain and discuss religious and/or cultural practices, thus providing more holistic end of life care (Reblin et al, 2014). …”

Section: Implications For Nursingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to practical and emotional needs, many caregivers and patients have spiritual needs during end of life care. Facilitating spiritual care is considered a component of optimal end of life care (Lynch & Dahlin, 2007; National Consensus Project for Quality Palliative Care, 2013), but is a topic that has been found to be more difficult for nurses to address (Molzahn & Sheilds, 2008; Reblin, Otis-Green, Ellington, & Clayton, 2014). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Nursing Support of Home Hospice Caregivers on the Day of Patient Death

Clayton¹,

Hulett²,

Κaur³

et al. 2017

ONF

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Purpose In this study we add to a sparse literature describing nurse-caregiver communication on the day of cancer patient death. Design A descriptive secondary analysis of 44 audiotaped home-hospice, day of death, nursing visits. Setting Nine hospices across three states. Sample 42 caregiver-cancer patient dyads; 27 hospice nurses. Methods Audiorecordings were coded for supportive nursing communication and relative time spent in physical, psychosocial and spiritual discussion. Variables Tangible, emotional, informational, esteem and networking supportive communication; Caregiver religious affiliation. Findings Nurses reported their communication skills were less effective when discussing difficult topics as compared to their overall communication effectiveness. Eleven patients died before the nursing visit, three died during the visit, 30 died post-visit. Nurses primarily engaged in discussions facilitating caregiver emotional, tangible, and informational support. More informational support was observed when patient death occurred during the nursing visit. Time spent in general conversational categories showed that physical care conversations predominated (80% of the average overall amount of conversation time), lifestyle/psychosocial discussions 14%, spiritual discussions 6%. Spiritual discussions were observed in only 7 of 44 hospice visits. Spiritual discussions, although short and infrequent, were significantly longer on average for caregivers without a religious affiliation. Conclusions Nurses support caregivers on the day of cancer patient death using multiple supportive communication strategies. Spiritual discussions are minimal. Nursing Implications Communication skills programs can potentially increase self-reported communication effectiveness. Emerging acute spiritual concerns, especially for caregivers without a previous religious affiliation, should be anticipated. Spiritual support is included in the hospice model of holistic care.

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“…However, there are also researchers who state that research on hope-raising strategies provides evidence of hope and satisfaction in life but that there is limited evidence that it reduces psychological stress. Besides, there is insufficient evidence of what can be done to implement hope-building strategies [8]. In 2001, Kaye Herth developed a package called Hope Intervention Program (HIP) that aims to increase hope [11], where it has been shown that it is possible to produce and maintain hope with appropriate methodology.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Hope-enhancement Instrument for Palliative Care Cancer Patients

Güçlü

2019

Cureus

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Aim Millions of new cancer cases are diagnosed each year. ‎Patients often become hopeless during the disease. This study aimed to develop a short-intervention instrument targeted to raise hope in cancer patients. Methods Using a panel of experts, an instrument was developed, which consisted of 11 counseling items. The instrument was applied to a sample of 153 palliative care cancer patients randomized into three groups (G1: instrument applied by Rater 1, G2: control, and G3: instrument applied by Rater 2). Application of the instrument required 20-30 minutes. Using the Herth Hope Index (HHI) scores as the main outcome, changes over time (baseline, 1-hour, and one-week) were evaluated. Results The mean baseline HHI scores were 41.38‎±4.46. ‎The HHI scores were statistically similar at the ‎baseline (p>0.05) but significantly different at one hour and one week in favor of the G1 and G3 groups (p<0.001). In G1, the HHI significantly increased from baseline to one-hour measurements (t=-12.413, ‎p<0.001) and remained unchanged at one week (t=1.088, ‎p=0.282). Similarly, there was a significant increase in the HHI scores from baseline to one-hour ‎measurements in G3 (t=-9.144, p<0.001), which remained unchanged between one hour and one week (t=-0.099, p=0.921). Conclusion This study demonstrated the effectiveness of a structured, short counseling intervention in increasing ‎hope among palliative care cancer patients.

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Strategies to Support Spirituality in Health Care Communication

Abstract: All health care professionals benefit from proficiency in spiritual communication skills. Attention to spiritual concerns ultimately improves care.

Cited by 12 publications

References 33 publications

The Provision of Spiritual Care in Hospices: A Study in Four Hospices in North Rhine-Westphalia

The Provision of Spiritual Care in Hospices: A Study in Four Hospices in North Rhine-Westphalia

Nursing Support of Home Hospice Caregivers on the Day of Patient Death

A Hope-enhancement Instrument for Palliative Care Cancer Patients

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