Spiritual care experiences by cancer patients, their family caregivers and healthcare team members in oncology practice settings: A qualitative study

Understanding Family Members in the Palliative Phases of Their Loved Ones: A Qualitative Study

Because of aging and rising rates of chronic diseases, the demand for palliative care services is increasing worldwide, and patients need family members to care for them throughout the palliative care process. This study aimed to investigate the experiences of the relatives of palliative care patients during hospitalization. This was a qualitative study conducted with 15 family members. A topic guide was used to conduct semistructured face-to-face interviews. Content analysis was used to analyze the textual data. As a result of the analysis, 3 main themes, 6 categories, and 24 subcategories emerged. The main themes were "reactions to the admission," "feeling obligated to care," and "coping processes." The interviews revealed that most participants had misconceptions and a lack of knowledge about palliative care. Almost all of the family members expressed that they experienced various emotions during this process and had trouble coping. The significant finding of our study is that culture and religious beliefs have a considerable influence on caregiving. A limited number of studies in the literature provide detailed insight into the state of patient relatives. Therefore, this study is critical in guiding palliative care professionals in understanding the requirements of this vulnerable group.

Spiritual care experiences of nurses working in intensive care units: A qualitative study

BACKGROUND

Most nurses working in intensive care units are unprepared to provide spiritual care to patients and they lack the competence and skills to provide spiritual care. Lack of moral evaluation of patients has negative effects on the patient. Spiritual care given to patients has effects on patient-nurse communication, general condition of the patient, and the quality of care.

AIM

This study was conducted to find out the spiritual care experiences of nurses working in intensive care units.

STUDY DESIGN

A qualitative descriptive design was used. The study was carried out with 14 nurses who were working in the intensive care units of a university hospital in eastern Turkey between May and July 2022. Two forms were created by the researcher according to the purpose of the study and the population. Inductive thematic analysis was used to evaluate the data. Ethics committee approval was obtained.

RESULTS

Ten of the nurses were women. Their ages were between 25 and 47 years, their working years ranged between 2 and 28 years, and their weekly working hours ranged between 40 to 56 hours. As a result of the thematic analysis, six themes and 18 sub-themes were determined: The themes determined are (1) Definition of spiritual care (2) Time of spiritual care, (3) Benefits of spiritual care, (4) Spiritual care practices, (5) Obstacles in providing spiritual care.

CONCLUSIONS

Providing spiritual care to patients in intensive care is a very important experience for nurses. Understanding spiritual care, recognizing its importance, and including it in nursing practice have a central significance.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE

Spiritual care provided in nursing profession is as important as physical care, and supporting patients in intensive care is at the heart of providing the best holistic care.

The Relationship between Distress Tolerance and Spiritual Well-Being towards ARV Therapy Adherence in People Living with HIV/AIDS

A crucial factor in the success of treatment for patients with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is adherence to antiretroviral (ARV) therapy among People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). Adherence issues remain a persisting problem with multifaceted causes. There are many studies on variables related to ARV therapy adherence, but no study has been found on spiritual well-being and distress tolerance in ARV therapy adherence. This study aims to determine the relationship between distress tolerance and spiritual well-being on adherence to ARV therapy in PLWHA. This research used a quantitative approach with a cross-sectional design. The sample collection process followed a consecutive sampling technique, with data gathered from 129 participants at the South Lampung Regional General Hospital located in Indonesia. Data collection was conducted using three questionnaires administered by the interviewer, which assessed distress tolerance using the Miller-Smith Rating Scale For Stress Tolerance (MSRS-ST), evaluated spiritual Well-Being using the Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS), and gauged ARV therapy adherence using the Medication Adherence Rating Scale (MARS). Data analysis using a simple logistic regression with a 95% confidence interval (CI) showed a significant relationship between distress tolerance (p-value 0.002) and spiritual well-being (p-value 0.036) towards ARV therapy adherence in PLWHA. The results of multiple logistic regression yielded distress tolerance as the most dominant and influential variable in this research. Distress tolerance and spiritual well-being impact adherence to ARV therapy in PLWHA. Suggestions for healthcare services should consider these factors to decrease the risk of non-adherence to therapy and inadvertently heighten mortality risk.

The Relationship Between Spiritual Well-Being, Life Satisfaction and Hope in Elderly Individuals in Turkey

Life satisfaction and hope are important features in elderly individuals. Spiritual well-being is thought to affect life satisfaction and hope in the elderly. This study was conducted to determine the association between spiritual well-being and life satisfaction and hope in elderly persons. This study followed a cross-sectional design. The sample size of the study was 1383 individuals aged 65 or older. The Spiritual Well-Being Scale (FACIT-Sp), Satisfaction with Life Scale, and Hope Scale were administered to participants. Results indicated that spiritual well-being was significantly associated with life satisfaction and hope (p < 0.05). A limitation of this finding is the possible contamination of the measure of spiritual well-being with indicators of meaning and peace that could explain the relationship between spiritual well-being and hope. The spiritual well-being scale used in this research included indicators of meaning and peace that could explain the relationship between spiritual well-being and hope.

Psychometric Properties of the Turkish Version of the Nurse Spiritual Therapeutic Scale for Oncology Patients and Caregivers

This study evaluated the Turkish version of the Nurse Spiritual Therapeutic Scale for assessing oncology patients' and caregivers' needs. It involved 200 participants from July 2022 to May 2023. The scale demonstrated high validity (content validity index = 0.97) and good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.879). Factor analysis revealed a 20-item single-factor structure with satisfactory representation (factor loadings: 0.29-0.89). Item-total score correlations indicated moderate to strong relationships (0.236-0.761). The model showed a good fit (goodness-of-fit indices > 0.90). The Turkish version of the scale is valid and reliable for assessing oncology patients' and caregivers' spiritual care needs.

Spiritual Care: A Description of Family Members’ Preferences of Spiritual Care Nursing Practices in Intensive Care Units in a Private Hospital in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa

Background: Spiritual care is a part of the holistic care that enables family members in intensive care units to find meaning in their life events and simultaneously bolsters their resilience and coping tools. Objective: To determine family members’ preferences of spiritual care practices that they require from nurses working in intensive care units. Methods: A quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted in the intensive care units of a private hospital in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. Data, using the Nurse Spiritual Therapeutic Scale, were collected from a purposive sample of family members (n = 47). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results: The mean overall Nurse Spiritual Therapeutic Scale was 58.4 (20–80). The most preferred and least preferred spiritual care practices by family members were “to be helped to have quiet time and space”, (M = 3.32, SD = 0.59) and “to arrange for a chaplain to visit them” (M = 2.70, SD= 0.91), respectively. Conclusion: The mean overall NSTS score indicated that there was a strong preference among family members for nurses to provide them with spiritual care in the intensive care units. However, due to the diversity of family members’ preferences it remains important that family members guide intensive care nurses in their spiritual care.

Effect of Nursing Method of Psychological Intervention Combined with Health Education on Lung Cancer Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy

At present, lung cancer has become clinically the malignant tumor with the highest incidence and mortality rate in China. Smoking, environmental pollution, infection, etc., are closely related to lung cancer. To investigate the effect of the nursing method of psychological intervention combined with health education on lung cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy, 70 lung cancer patients who received chemotherapy in our hospital from June 2017 to June 2020 were selected and randomly divided into a routine intervention group (n = 35) and a combined intervention group (n = 35). Patients in the two groups had the same chemotherapy method and medication. The routine intervention group received the routine nursing intervention, while on this basis, the combined intervention group received psychological intervention combined with health education. After 6-week nursing, self-rating anxiety scale (SAS) score, self-rating depression scale (SDS) score, cancer pain score before and after nursing, improvement of respiratory function before and after nursing, sleep quality score, quality of life score, and nursing satisfaction were analyzed. Through nursing intervention, the quality of life indexes such as physiological, physical, social, emotional, and other indexes in the combined intervention group were significantly better than those in the routine intervention group, with statistical differences (P < 0.01). The nursing satisfaction in the combined intervention group was significantly better than that in the routine intervention group, with statistical significance (χ² = 8.9342, P < 0.05). The psychological intervention combined with health education for lung cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy can effectively alleviate anxiety and depression, increase confidence in treatment, reduce pain and significantly improve sleep quality, respiratory function, quality of life, and nursing satisfaction.