The Spiritual Supporter Scale as a New Tool for Assessing Spiritual Care Competencies in Professionals: Design, Validation, and Psychometric Evaluation

Fopka-Kowalczyk, Małgorzata; Best, Megan; Krajnik, Małgorzata

doi:10.1007/s10943-022-01608-3

Cited by 6 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…The score analysis of the Spiritual Supporter Scale [24] revealed that significant differences were observed between the two groups in the overall score (p < 0.001) as well as in 4 out of 5 subscales: Spirituality in relation to one's own suffering and the suffering of others (p < 0.00); Attitude to prayer (p < 0.00); Beliefs regarding spirituality (p < 0.05); Sensitivity to the suffering of others (p < 0.02). On average, in the overall score, respondents who worked in oncology wards got lower scores [median (Me) = 5; mean (M) = 5.11; standard deviation (SD) = 1.89] compared to those who worked in hospices (Me = 7; M = 6.9; SD = 1.50).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this study, results obtained with the help of the Spiritual Supporter Scale point to a lower sense of being prepared for providing spiritual support among oncology unit healthcare professionals in comparison to persons who work in hospices. It relates to both understanding one's own spirituality as well as attitude towards it to a person in need of support and care [24]. What is more, oncology unit medical staff feel that providing spiritual care to patients and their families lies in their area of responsibility much less often.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The cross-sectional study was conducted using a survey questionnaire technique. The research was executed with the help of a standardized Spiritual Supporter Scale, for which the psychometric values were defined at a high level of reliability with Cronbach's α = 0.88 [24]. The questionnaire contains 31 closed questions based on multiple-choice answers in the form of the five-point Likert scale.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The raw results were converted to sten scores accordingly. Scores within sten 1-2 were defined as very low, 3-4 as low, 5-6 as medium, 7-8 as high, and 9-10 as very high [24].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Exploring the readiness of hospice and oncology unit staff to offer spiritual support to patients: preliminary findings

Gurzyńska,

Sobczak,

Lachowicz

2024

Palliat Med Pract

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Introduction: Patients' spiritual needs are often marginalized by medical staff, who identify them with religious practice, faith, and God. Illness and related human suffering are not just physical ailments alone. The loss of health entails several changes in a patient's life and requires reorganization of the family, professional, social, and spiritual aspects of it. The purpose of this article is to analyze the medical personnel's sense of readiness to provide spiritual care to patients of oncology units and hospice facilities. Methods: The study was carried out with the use of the Spiritual Supporter Scale whose psychometric values were determined on a high level of reliability with Cronbach's α = 0.88. Results:The results of the Spiritual Supporter Scale showed that oncology professionals got significantly lower scores [median (Me) = 5; mean (M) = 5.11; standard deviation (SD) = 1.89] in the overall scale score than those who work in hospices (Me = 7; M = 6.9; SD = 1.5). The analysis also showed that oncology unit employees (54%), declared that providing spiritual care to patients is an integral part of their work (p < 0.02) significantly less often than those employed in hospices (88%). They were also less likely to declare (77%) that spiritual support is necessary in their workplace than persons who provide care in hospices (95%; p < 0.01). Conclusions:The study showed the differences in the sense of preparedness as well as competencies to provide spiritual care among medical workers in hospices and oncology units.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The raw results were converted to sten scores accordingly. Scores within sten 1-2 were defined as very low, 3-4 as low, 5-6 as medium, 7-8 as high, and 9-10 as very high [24].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Exploring the readiness of hospice and oncology unit staff to offer spiritual support to patients: preliminary findings

Gurzyńska,

Sobczak,

Lachowicz

2024

Palliat Med Pract

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“…Students were asked to fill in a questionnaire before and after their participation in the programme on spirituality. This structured and standardized psychometric tool Spiritual Support Scale (SpSup) Scale have been described elsewhere ( 28 ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A training programme for medical students in providing spiritual care to people with advanced diseases and their loved ones: A case study from the Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Poland

Fopka-Kowalczyk

Groves²,

Larkin³

et al. 2022

Front. Cardiovasc. Med.

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PurposeThis article presents the first programme on spiritual care particularly for people with advanced life-limiting illness including heart failure, lung disease or cancer for medical students in Poland implemented at the Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz of the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń.Methods and materialsSeveral steps were identified for the development of the first programme on spirituality for medical students at the Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz including preliminary work on the content of the programme, agreement on key concepts, terms, and definitions; consultations with teachers and review of the literature.ResultsThe first Polish spiritual curriculum for medical students was implemented. The spirituality curriculum will potentially contribute to better care for the people with advanced illnesses such as heart failure, chronic lung disease or cancer and improve the quality of relationships between professionals and patients.ConclusionThe article presents the content of the program, the expected learning objectives and ascribed teaching methods, along with the preliminary evaluation made by students.

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Spirituality, Organizational Gratefulness, and Well-Being Among Polish Workers

Wnuk

2024

J Relig Health

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The relationship between spirituality at work and occupational and subjective well-being is not a well-recognized area of research. Many studies have indicated the beneficial effects of spiritual activities on employees’ flourishing, but the mechanisms of this influence are still not sufficiently explained. This study aimed to verify the proposed mechanisms that underlie employees’ spirituality, stress at work, and life satisfaction, and the role of gratitude toward the organization in these relationships. It was assumed that employees’ spirituality is indirectly related to stress at work via gratitude toward the organization. In turn, gratitude toward the organization is directly and indirectly related to life satisfaction through stress at work. The study encompassed 754 individuals working in different companies in Poland. In a sample of women, both spirituality dimensions were indirectly related to stress at work and life satisfaction. Among men, only the secular dimension of spirituality, such as attitude toward coworkers, was indirectly related to stress at work and life satisfaction. Gratitude toward the organization was negatively directly related to stress at work and, through this variable, indirectly positively related to life satisfaction. The benefits of employees’ spirituality for their well-being were confirmed, emphasizing a grateful attitude toward the organization as a significant factor in this relationship.

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The Spiritual Supporter Scale as a New Tool for Assessing Spiritual Care Competencies in Professionals: Design, Validation, and Psychometric Evaluation

Cited by 6 publications

References 61 publications

Exploring the readiness of hospice and oncology unit staff to offer spiritual support to patients: preliminary findings

Exploring the readiness of hospice and oncology unit staff to offer spiritual support to patients: preliminary findings

A training programme for medical students in providing spiritual care to people with advanced diseases and their loved ones: A case study from the Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Poland

Spirituality, Organizational Gratefulness, and Well-Being Among Polish Workers

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