Clinical implications of spirituality to mental health: review of evidence and practical guidelines

Abstract

Objective: Despite empirical evidence of a relationship between religiosity/spirituality (R/S) and mental health and recommendations by professional associations that these research findings be integrated into clinical practice, application of this knowledge in the clinic remains a challenge. This paper reviews the current state of the evidence and provides evidence-based guidelines for spiritual assessment and for integration of R/S into mental health treatment. Methods: PubMed searches of relevant terms yielded 1,109 papers. We selected empirical studies and reviews that addressed assessment of R/S in clinical practice. Results: The most widely acknowledged and agreed-upon application of R/S to clinical practice is the need to take a spiritual history (SH), which may improve patient compliance, satisfaction with care, and health outcomes. We found 25 instruments for SH collection, several of which were validated and of good clinical utility. Conclusions: This paper provides practical guidelines for spiritual assessment and integration thereof into mental health treatment, as well as suggestions for future research on the topic.

Depression, stress and anxiety in medical students: A cross-sectional comparison between students from different semesters

“…Although many studies point to an association of religious/ spiritual beliefs with mental health, physical health, and quality of life 32,33 and other investigations have assessed religiosity and medical students' views on this issue, 34 few studies have specifically investigated the association between mental health and beliefs in medical education. Wachholtz et al 35 assessed 259 American medical students and found that individuals with lower levels of spiritual well-being and daily spiritual experiences had greater psychological stress and burnout.…”

‘They daren’t tell people’: therapists’ experiences of working with clients who report anomalous experiences

“…In addition, given that participants felt that clients are often seeking permission that it is okay to discuss AEs, therapists could directly ask about these experiences at the assessment stage, not unlike guidelines for working with religious/spiritual issues which suggest taking a spiritual history (see Moreira-Almeida, Koenig, & Lucchetti, 2014). However, further research is necessary to elicit client's reactions to being directly asked about AEs as well as the impact of such experiences on the therapeutic process.…”

Brazilian scientific articles on “Spirituality, Religion and Health”

“…This relationship between spirituality and mental health has been widely demonstrated by many different authors over the years and all around the world [5][6][7][8][9] , usually showing lower rates of drug use, lower prevalence of depression and suicidal attempts and better quality of life and well being. Likewise, there is also a relationship between R/S and physical health, such as less hospitalization, better coping with the disease, better treatment adherence, more acceptance of therapeutic measures, and lower mortality rates [10][11][12] .…”

“…In view of this evidence, R/S studies in health have progressively become a topic of interest for different academic and professional societies, groups and researchers all over the world 5 . Likewise, this content has been included in the curricula of many universities (90% of US medical schools, 59% of British medical schools and 40% in Brazil) 13,14 .…”